Possibly Noticed
by TheKeeperGeek
Summary: McLean. Chase. Levesque. Ramirez- Arellano. Some if the biggest names in America. What do they share? Four daughters who are music- obessed nobodies who fantasize being noticed by anyone: their crushes, the industry, the world. The question is: what did they give, and what happens if- when- they're possibly noticed? First Fic! T cuz some scenes and cursing (also i dont own the art)
1. One- Intro and Starbucks

**Hiya, guys! My name is TheKeeperGeek, and this is my first fic, so please don't judge too harshly (although I do appreciate constructive criticism and critiques). I'd love it if you reviewed my story and tell me what you liked or what you think I should do differently. Also, some of the family (brother/sister) things might get weird, so be ready for that. Thanks bunches!**

 **-TheKeeperGeek**

 **DISCLAIMER: I own nothing except the plot and Markus, who I made up on a whim.**

* * *

 ** _Piper's POV_**

Hey! I think that's how you're suposed to start these things off. Proper introductions must be in order then, huh? My name is Piper, Piper McLean, and I'm a junior at Goode High. My besties are Annabeth Chase, Hazel Levesque, and Reyna Ramirez-Arellano, and they're all juniors, too. We're- well, pretty much in the nobody category at school, but that's not entirely a bad thing! We still make great grades, participate in clubs, and hang out all the time with each other. Just like any other, right? When you think of it that way, it seems that being in your own little group- no title, just normal . . . well, nobodies- it doesn't sound so bad, right?

WRONG!

The girls and I seem to be the main target of the 'populars', a group of snotty bitches who think they're better than everyone else and should immediately rule the school, _their_ way. Warning, their way is a dictatorship; not that they have enough brain cells to figure out what that means. They'll dress in medieval gowns and make other every girl dress in a simple frock, given the accessory choices of a broom or a mop. After that, they'll make us kiss the floor where they walked and clean it up afterwards. They seem particularly fond of trying to screw us over, though. Thank goodness there are the boys!

Oh, who you ask? Wait, you can't ask. Why, only the MOST POPULAR GUYS IN SCHOOL who just happen to have been best friends with us since 5th grade! They're all a grade higher than us in their senior year. Their names are Frank, Markus, Percy . . . and Jason. ( _Siiiigghhs)_ Granted, I should mention that I have a slight crush on Jason, as does Annabeth for Percy, Hazel for Reyna's brother, Frank, and Reyna for my brother, Markus. We would've more than likely been humiliated twenty times already this year if it weren't for them convincing the 'popluars' to stop, and it's already the start of November! And I hate everything. Oh, well. I'm about to head over to Hazel's house to work on another song we thought about. Wow, that actually made me feel better. Guess this wasn't a waste of money.

Piper

* * *

 _BRRING!_ The bell sounded, signaling the end of school.

'Finally!' I think as a quickly gather my books, nod a goodbye at my Advanced Algebra II teacher, and march off tiredly to my locker. I skid to a stop, quickly dial in the number, and shove my books in my locker like they were on fire. I stayed up all night working on a project and studying for midterms, so I was trying not to all asleep all morning. I woke up saying _'screw the world'_ so i just threw on a t-shirt, a green hoodie, and a pair of jeans with some white converse. I slam my locker shut and feel someone jumping on my back, yelling, "STARBUCKS AWAAAAYY!" I laugh and tilt my head up to meet a pair of excited golden eyes and frizzy brown hair tied up in a bandanna. "You're paying, Hazel," I chortle.

"Whyyy," she whines. "That's not fair! I paid last time; Reyna should pay!"

"Um, no thanks, I'm driving." Says a girl with a swishing black braid and intense black eyes approaching us on my left. "Plus, Mother cut me of for a week 'cause of that 90 on the science paper." She glanced sheepishly down her deep purple cardigan, Miss-Me jeans, to her purple flats. Reyna was an _amaaazing_ student, but her parents honestly expect more from her than she could handle. She was already finished with high school level English and Mathematics, and she was president of 4 different clubs, not to mention head of the school dance committee. Seriously, how does that girl have time for Starbucks?

"Fine," Hazel said. "What about Ann-"

"Hazel, I paid last time. The last _two_ times, actually. And I need to start saving for Yale." Annabeth states matter-of-factly as she dodges the student traffic to reach us on our side of the hall, nose-deep in another book. She was dressed similar to me, except with a blue hoodie and French braid instead of a simple ponytail. Annabeth was in the same boat Reyna is, except she isn't in any clubs, does volunteer work, and is already accepted into Yale as an architecture major. Her mother, Athena Chase, owns the largest architectural firm in the states. Her mother really wants Annabeth to go into the business, and since she is such a momma's girl, of course she'll apply for Yale and get in. Sometimes I wonder how I got friends like these . . .

Hazel _humphed_ and slid off my back. She pretended to dust off her denim jacket, which was covering a yellow shirt over denim capris. She was wearing white converse like me, but they were in better shape than mine were. Hazel is an outstanding dancer and gymnast; ask anyone. Even the 'populars' will say something along the lines of, "Well, whatever. She's good, I guess." They guess? They _guess?!_ She's fantastic, brilliant, outstanding! She can out-dance anyone in the school, hence she's the head of the dance team. Hazel makes exceedingly good grades as well, but she was always preferred dance over her studies, which is why she already has a scholarship to Julliard. She also owns the heart of an angel. She is one of the sweetest living things you can ever hope to meet. She will sacrifice anything she can to be there for you, or help you through something. _My friends are the best_ , I think randomly to myself. I have no clue how they became to be friends with me; a weirdly obsessed with music brunette from Cali.

The stage has always been my passion, ever since I was born. Maybe because my father is the famous Tristan McLean, or one of my sisters is a stage manager. Either way, I love to act, but even more; I love to sing. The girls have always told me that I had a beautiful voice. Actually, we all really do. Singing is all of our passions, writing songs, performing on stage. The girls and I will dream about ourselves dancing and singing on stage, adoring fans shouting our name: Changing Ways! Ahh, yes; we've already picked out a name. We aren't exactly sure why Changing Ways, but we all just liked it.

"Fiiine. I'll pay. I still have some cash left."

"YAY!" The other girls cheer.

"Hey, guys. Dad's also back in L.A, if you want to come over tonight!"

"Woohoo!" Hazel cheered as she jumped on my back again. "Away, peasants," she announced, in an awful medieval accent. "Lead me to the bucks of the stars!" We all giggle at Hazel's ridiculousness as we file out of the school and pile into Reyna's white Range Rover and drive away to enjoy ourselves without the torture of bullies or school bringing us down. Or so we thought...

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 **Ooh, what'll happen? Well, it is now four in the morning and I am tired, so please review. Thanks for reading!**


	2. Two- Unfortunate Encounter

Heya! So here's why this wasn't out sooner:

Last night, I was writing the chapter, all was well, and I was about three or four paragraphs away from finishing. And then all of it was erased. All of it. Erased. Gone. Obviated. Adios! Au Revoir! The chapter vanished after I hit the enter button. I stared at my screen for five minutes before frantically trying to get it all back. I couldn't find it, or how to get it back, so I had to rewrite the whole thing- although I think this one sounds better, so maybe it was meant to be! Anyway, tell me what you think in a review. Here it is: **-TheKeeperGeek**

* * *

 _ **Hazel's POV**_

Aah, Starbucks, the sanctuary for Changing Ways. You would think that this was our 'special place', but there is a place we hold deeply in our hearts that could never be replaced. We'll get there later.

We pull into our reserved parking spot (the amazing baristas know us and our orders by heart) and I jump out before the car is fully parked. I march to the door and throw it open melodramatically, releasing a long held sigh-groan from today's impossibleness. I walk over to the newer looking cashier and slap Piper's twenty on the counter. "One Hazel special, please. And the rest is for the ones behind me," I say, jabbing a thumb at the door. I slinked over too our regular booth in the back corner and drop my heavy head on the table. I hear busy voices at the check out, then the sound of the girls walking towards me. "Why," I ask like a four year old. "Why do we have to put up with the torture and painful boringness of school?"

"'Cause life isn't fair, Peaches," Piper says, sliding next to me in the booth. She was wickedly gorgeous, with ever-changing eyes and long, brown, wavy hair. She was also the most 'momish' of us all. She always had to make sure we did our homework (which we always did, of course), scolded us for not picking up our rooms, and loved us unconditionally. Sure, she can be a total party animal and bad ass, but she always is our group momma.

Somehow, I got stuck with Peaches for a nickname. I let it stick for a while, then I got curious why they went with peaches. Rey said that it's because I'm small, and fuzzy and warm on the inside. So now I'm Peaches to all my friends.

The lights suddenly darkened and I felt hands close around my eyes, causing me to jump. The smell of chlorine radiated off the person behind me, giving away exactly who scared the _daylights_ out of me. **{Okay, I'm sorry. I felt punny.}** "Guess who, Peachy?"

Percy is like an older brother to me. He is always there and protecting me, whether I'm receiving an award, or need a shoulder to do a shit ton of crying on. I reach behind myself to find his stomach and start tickling, yelling, "YOU, SEAWEED BRAIN!" for good measure. Once I've tortured him enough (which is never enough), he cries "Truce, truce, truce!" with tears leaking out of his eyes. He pulls himself up and squeezes between me and Piper, Jason squishes in with Annabeth and Reyna, and Markus and Frank pull up chairs.

"So what'cha working on?" Frank asks. I try not to look him in the eyes, a little afraid that I'll give away my humongous crush on him. The first time I told the girls that I was crushing on him, I was a bit scared of what Reyna would say, being his sister and all. She accepted it with all the warmth in her heart, squealing about how we could be sisters someday. Annabeth pulls out a familiar book that has grey, purple, orange, and pink corners. We all circle around our song book, Frank and Markus standing behind us to get a better view. I try not to focus on his breath tickling my neck as I say, "It's still pretty rough, but we have a few ideas for this new one." The guys all look at us expectantly, waiting. My head started flashing signs that they wanted us to sing. Piper must've realized it, too. "Oh, um . . ." she stutters. "Like Hazel said, it's still rough, and this is only the first draft and-"

"Come on, Beauty Queen, sing us something," her brother urged her. She sighed, saying, "Fine, I'm cool with it. Don't you dare insult us or tease us about it, though." she added. We were all pretty uncomfortable singing in front of them, but singing our original magnified it by at least 10. Annabeth and Reyna mumbled okays, glancing at their crushes like they needed their consent. I always knew about Annie's crush on Percy, and vise versa. He tries not to show it, but he's head over heels for that little dork. Reyna and Markus seem like they've known about their feelings towards each other, but Reyna's too dense to figure out that he actually likes her. They'll flirt and comfort each other as if they were already a couple, though. They all glance pleadingly at me.

"Fine. Just . . . don't criticize us too harshly." Percy slung and arm around my shoulders and said, "Never. Sing for us, ladies."

Annabeth squirms, something she rarely does, and starts to sing softly:

 **Annabeth-** _Still a little bit of your taste in my mouth_

 _Still a little bit of you laced with my doubt_

 _Still a little hard to say what's going on?_

Piper shifts uncomfortably, then sings:

 **Piper-** _ Still a little bit of your ghost your witness_

 _Still a little bit of your face I haven't kissed_

 _You step a little closer each day_

 _That I can't say what's going on_

We all glance at each other nervously, then we harmonize on the chorus:

 **All-** _Stones taught me to fly_

 _Love taught me to lie_

 _And life taught me to die_

 _So it's not hard to fall_

 _When you float like a cannonball_

 **Hazel-** _Still a little bit of your song in my ear_

 _Still a little bit of your words I long to hear_

I can feel the guy's eyes on me as I sing, pressuring me with the thoughts of, _Should I run here? Is this part secure enough? Did I get that pitch?_

I look at Reyna, her eyes doubtful. She started to sing with me on the harmony:

 **Reyna-** _You step a little closer to me_

 _So close that I can't see what's going on_

 _Woah_

 **All-** _Stones taught me to fly_

 _Love taught me to lie_

 _So come on courage_

 _Teach me to be shy_

 _Cause it's not hard to fall_

 _When you know that you just don't know_

Annie starts to sing in that perfect, princess voice of hers:

 **Annabeth-** _Stones taught me to fly_

 _Love taught me to cry_

We all start to sing at the key change:

 **All-** _So come on courage_

 _Teach me to be shy_

 _Cause it's not hard to fall_

 _And I don't want to scare him_

 _It's not hard to fall_

 _And I don't want to lose_

 _It's not hard to fall_

Piper finishes the song:

 **Piper** \- _When you float like a cannonball_

Starbucks was silent. The girls and I had finished our song with tears in our eyes as we were reminded of the inspiration for the song. Then the whole store erupts with an applause and cheers, telling us it was beautiful and asked if we had more. I stare in shock and the scene in front of me, flabbergasted. I looked over at Annabeth, who was gaping like a fish, and Reyna, who was quickly wiping the tears from her eyes, laughing. Piper looked as if she had been slapped: she was in shock.

At the center of all of the cheering were the guys. They were whooping and hollering like they were at a football game. Percy was pulling me in and noogying my head. Markus was winking at Reyna and telling her she sounded awesome. Jason was hugging Pipes from behind and telling her she was amazing. Percy then jumped over Piper and sauntered over to Annabeth, picked her up, and spun her around, Annie laughing in his arms. I gasped at them, jumped on the booth and yelled, "PIPES! It's PERCABETH!" She looked over at them and squealed, gushing at how cute they were. They both looked at us, looked at each other, then Percy put Annie down hurriedly, both blushing until I wasn't sure if they were people or tomatoes.

"Aww!" Piper, Rey, and I said. Suddenly I was scooped up, and thrown on the shoulders of Frank. "You were brilliant, Peach! Where'd you learn to sing like that?" he gushed. I felt like I was about to faint from happiness, but I tried to keep my cool. "It's natural talent," I boast.

"Plus endless shower singing!"Annabeth threw out.

"Annie!"

She just smirked at me and sang, "Don't call me Annie."

I sighed and slid off Frank's shoulders. "Fine, so the infamous shower singing is true, but these girls are the main reason I can sing." The girls awed and Pipes pulled me into a hug as Reyna said, "Don't get sentimental on us now, Peachy." I was so happy, in a lovely world of bliss, when naturally, the moment just _had_ to be shattered.

"Ew! Well, well, well. Looky here, girls; the ugly losers nobody cares about," a snotty voice sneered above me. I exchanged annoyed glances with the girls as we were forced to face or mortal enemies: the 'pop' girls. With too much makeup, clothes that barely hid anything, and five inch heels that never match, these bitches can't keep themselves from torturing us.

"So, you actually think you can sing?" Drew asked, spitting her words.

"No. We know we can sing. It's just a matter of some people's opinions to whether we sing good, and we certainly aren't taking yours into consideration," Piper said back.

"Are you implying that you think you're better than us?" Calypso asked venomously.

"I'll imply that I'm shocked you actually know what imply means," Reyna murmured.

"Apparently, they do girls," Rachel states with poison lacing her words.

"Well, if they think they're that good, then they can meet us at Karaoke St. Marks to let the public decide," Miranda said in that snooty little voice of hers. "If we don't see you there at 9:00 tonight, then obviously we win by default. And everyone will be reminded of what weak little chickens you are. Oh, I wonder what the school board would think of their smart ass little prodigies that decided to go to a college frat party, get wasted, and ditch their classes for 'Something worthwhile...'"She questioned with fake innocence as she showed us the fake Instagram photos of 'us' at a college party with drinks in hand, and the outline of a blonde girl kissing a random guy. We all audibly gasped, and with that, they sashayed out of Starbucks, leaving the girls and I at the booth with our jaws dropped. After a few stretched seconds, Percy said, "You're going to swallow flies if you girls keep your mouths open much longer."

I slammed my mouth shut, swallowed, the stuttered, "Wh-what just happened?"

Reyna's face screwed up in a scowl as she said, "Those hoes just invited us to a match of Karaoke."

The boys looked clueless. "Uh," Jason started. "I don't see what the big deal is. You just have to sing in front a few people, right? You'll nail this!"

"Thanks, Jase," Annabeth said, "But Karaoke St. Marks is where literally all the celebs and talent scouts-"

"Actors and actresses-" Piper tacks on.

"Popstars and radio announcers-" Reyna throws in.

"Studio managers and reporters for top magazines-" I pipe up.

"Okay, we get it. So they're really expecting you to sing in front of all those people and get judged by them?"

"Or get humiliated again," Reyna said earnestly. "If those photos get out, we're absolutely done for."

A few solemn moments passed by until Annabeth banged her hand on the table and stood up, causing everyone to jump. "It's not fair they get to fuck around with our lives." she said, anger seething out of her. "Which is why I'm going to sing tonight at Marks. Before you tell me how stupid this is, I'm aware. But I also know that if we sing good, this could be a great opportunity for us. We could possibly get a record deal, or at least get noticed. And think about their faces if we win. _Once_ we win. It would shut them up forever! And we can finally do what we love, not what we were told we wanted to be."

Silence was passed out around the table, until Piper stood up with Annabeth said, "A- freakin'-men, girl! I'm with you, screw those whores." Percy and Jason looked up at Piper and Annabeth like they were insane, but perfect. Who's saying we can't do what we love? _Hmm_ , I think. _Who says?_ I joined them and said, "Bring it on bitches. Changing Ways' gonna reck ya!" Piper and Annabeth cheer, which leaves us all looking at Reyna. Poor Rey, all she wants to do is please her mom, who wants her to grow up to be important to the world. I could see the debate she was having in her head through her dark eyes. Finally, she smiled at us and gave us her answer:

"We're gonna fuck these hoes up real bad."

"Hell yeah!" I say, and pulled everyone into a group hug. We broke away and looked at the guys. Markus said, "I'm with you, no matter how crazy you are," while Percy and Jason nodded. Frank looked like he was debating, because like Rey, Frank had high expectations from his dad, and didn't want to let this ruin his so-far perfect streak. I looked at him with pleading eyes and said, "Please, Frank? Do it for us?" He softened and grinned. "Sure, why the hell not."

We all put a hand in the middle and had a break. I checked my watch and I felt my face slacken. "Girls," I said softly. "Girls, girls, GIRLS!" They whipped their heads at me when I yelled, "IT'S FIVE THIRTY!"

"WHAT?!" They screeched. We tripped over ourselves trying to collect our things and rush out the door. We turned to the guys as we stumbled out of the booth. "You coming or not, 'cause we only have 3 and a half hours to pick or write a song, record a track, edit the song, make up a decent stage routine, burn a CD, and pick out an outfit; it would be nice to have some help." Reyna got out in one breath. The guys 'ohed' and gathered their stuff. "Jason, follow me," Annie called behind us. The eight of us ran out to our cars and drove off to my house. When the cars were parked, I unlocked the door, rushed a hello to my surprised parents saying that we had a project due, which technically wasn't a lie, and we sprinted upstairs to our favorite room in the house and, over-all, favorite place in the world: the humongous, eggshell white music room. My father loves to play instruments and owned dozens of banks all over the country, so we owned at least to of every instrument, a recording booth, a sound check system, and almost everything an aspiring artist needs.

The guys gape at the collection of musical items as we throw down our bags and spread out to check and tune various things. "All set," Annabeth says from sound check. "What do I need to tune, Peaches?" Piper called from the rack of guitars. "Acoustics are running, and the e-read is on." Reyna yells across the room from a table of tablets about the size of a desktop that read notes as soon as you played them. **{I know, I made it up; just thought it would be a cool thing to have}** "And I got an idea," I announce from the table in the center of the room, songbook in hand. Everyone crowds around me, watching my as I form the chorus of a song.

I turned the book so the other girls could have a better look. I try out the small paragraph I wrote:

 **Hazel-** Who says? Who says you're not perfect?  Who says you're not worth it?  Who says you're the only one that's hurting?

"Trust me. That's the price of beauty." Pipes writes down.

"Who says you're not pretty," Annie tosses in.

"Who says you're not beautiful?" Rey scribbles on the page.

"Who says?" We all say at the same time.

We stare at the page like we're accusing it of something while the boys watch us. After a few minutes, we all say, "'Kay," and run off, Annabeth towards the sheet music e-read, Piper towards the guitars, Reyna towards the drums, and me off towards the piano. The guys looked at each other, shrugged, and each one found one of us. I didn't know Frank was behind me until he said, "You need any help?" I whirled around, trying to quickly plug in all the cords. I looked at him and saw an amused look on his face. Well now I couldn't have that, now could I? I held out three different colored cords and said, "You can plug these in." He looked confused, but took the cords and searched the piano while I dashed over to Annabeth and grabbed an e-read, saying "'Scuse me, Wise Girl," and jogging back over to the piano, which Frank somehow managed to set up. "Hmm, impressive," I tell him while I set up the e-read. When the machine dings, I mutter a 'yes' and plop down on the bench, patting the spot beside me to tell Frank to sit down. I start to warm up my fingers by playing a quick jig, and then I started to play random notes that held me in our song. I knew this song would be extremely dependent on the guitar, so I played some simpler chords and called Piper over.

In the back of my head, I was amazed at how fast we were working, and even further back, I remembered the days we would just lay on the floor in here and daydream about the day when we would do this for a living, and the boys who would help us get there. The fact that I was sitting at the piano with one of them now was a bit surreal, and I couldn't be happy or more scared out of my wits.

Tonight, we show those bitches who we really are.

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Yay! Chapter 2 is done! Next few chapters, the girls get to do what they really love. Thanks for reading!


	3. Three- Ready to Rock

Heya, guys!

I know that your wondering where Leo is, but I'm gonna add him in later. For now, let us get into Chapter Three. Please review and tell me what you thought; I hope you find some constructive criticism for me. (I know what you're thinking: "This girl is whacked." And you are right. I've gone dumb after finals.) Thank ya bunches!  
 **-TheKeeperGeek**

 **DISCLAIMER: I wish I owned these beautiful characters, but unfortunately, Uncle Rick does.**

 _(Also,song in the last chapter was called Cannonball. That version of it was done by Little Mix. Original was by Damien Rice.)_

* * *

 _ **Reyna's POV**_

Those two and a half hours were the fastest paced hours we've ever attempted to put together a song in. I was at the drums, trying to work out the tempo, when Markus walked up to me and asked if he could help.

"Well, you could grab me an e-read and plug it." He rushed over to the table and grabbed one while I played the song over again in my head. I started tapping out a random beat. _Rat, tat, tat, tat. Rat, tat, tat, tat._ I hear Piper at the guitar and Hazel at the piano, while Annabeth is faintly humming tunes and scribbling down words.

I start thinking of what we should do with the melody. Something that's going to add that extra touch to it. _Think, Reyna,_ I scold myself. _Think, think, think_! Then it hits me, one of my favorite instruments: the violin.

I gasp, causing everyone to look at me. "Violin," I say, dashing towards the strings wall. "Violin, violin! This could be our extra touch!" They all stared to stare at me, confused, as I grabbed an e-read and the insrtument off the wall, set it up, then started to play the melody. The sweet music filled the room, and realization dawned on the girls faces. Hazel whipped back around and started playing along, while Piper scurried to follow in suit. Annabeth tried at the music with the lyrics, and when we finished, we were all smiling and squealing.

"So, who's gonna play drums?" Hazel asked. My smile fell off; I can't do both...

"I can do it," Pipes volunteered, "and Wise Girl can take the guitar." Annabeth nodded, and we started to play from the top. At about thirty minutes in, the boys had brought up snacks, and the girls and I were ready to record the music for the CD. We entered the sound booth after showing the guys how to turn it on the right settings. I gave Jason a thumbs up, and Piper tapped her drumsticks, _"One, two, three, four!"_

It took three tries to get it just how we wanted it. We added some effects in the music, lightened the sound, and Hazel started to burn the CD. Annabeth showed me the lyrics she came up with and we revised them while Piper made a call to one of her sisters. Once Piper hung up, we crowded around Hazel and went over the lyrics, assigning parts and creating harmonies. Once the CD was done, we plugged it into the CD player, grabbed microphones, had the guys drag over a speaker, and hooked everything up before playing the CD. We ran over it countless times, jotting down better words, fixing the harmonies, and memorizing the song, when we finally pronounced ourselves done. I checked the time on my phone, which said 8:00.

"Hey, girls, it's already eight. Shouldn't Silena be here by now?" I asked just as the door bell rang. Pipes and I shared a look, and followed Hazel and Annie downstairs with the guys closely at our heels. The door was swung right open to show a beautiful girl with black hair and pristine blue eyes, two enormous pink luggage cases trailing behind her. She was talking with Mrs. Levesque when she turned and saw us, running over to hug her.

"Hey, girlies! How are you doing?" The aspiring fashion designer said. "Pipes told me there was an emergency so I grabbed a few things and threw them in the bag so I also packed my sewing machine to hem everything to make sure it all fits and I'm pretty sure I brought at least five shoe sizes and I know that I've brought at least seven cases of make up so I think-"

Hey, sis?" Piper called over her rambling. "We have about thirty minutes before we have to leave."

Silena's eyes widened at that while Mrs. Levesque asked, "Leave?"

Hazel glanced sheepishly at her mom and said, "We were thinking about going to karaoke?"

Hazel's mom smiled and said, "Oh, I know. I just wished you would've told me instead of me figuring out on my own."

We stood shocked, as Hazel stammered, "How-how did you find out?"

"Well, that's a story for next time, because you girls need to get dressed! Boys, do you mind helping getting Silena's luggage in the sewing room? I can help hem the clothes, if needed." Everyone moved into action while Hazel hugged her mom and said, "I love you so much! I owe you!"

We all sprinted upstairs, following Hazel's mom into the sewing room: a huge space with light pink painted walls and mannequins that posed on a elevated wooden platform. In one corner, there were big dressing rooms, and in another was tables swallowed by fabrics and three different sewing machines. Silena dragged the cases over to the middle of the room and popped them open. Inside were dozens of purple, pink, orange, grey, blue, green, white, gold, and silver pieces of clothing, along with about fifty leather and pleather things. She dived in the trunk of clothing, throwing pleather pants, a pink tube top, and a white crop top, a sparkling leather jacket at Piper; a white halter crop top, a fuzzy white coat, and a short black pleather skirt at Hazel; a black, crisscrossed tube top with long bell-bottom sleeves and high wasted ripped black jeans at Annabeth; and pleather overalls with a purple sleeveless tube top at me.

"I think those should work," Silena announced. She pointed at the dressing rooms and said, "Go get dressed and we'll see about hair and make-up when you're done. And boys, out please."

We looked around at each other and shrugged, walking towards a dressing room while the boys complained as Mrs. Levesque told them to grab some snacks from the kitchen and shooed them out. "We don't know where the kitchen is!" Percy said, so she went to show them the way. Silena caught us smirking at them and called, "Double time, ladies. Double time!"

I started speed walking into the closest dressing room and threw off my clothes. I stretched the top over my head, wiggled into the overalls, and headed out with my other clothes in my hand. I had one of the more simpler outfits, so I was out first. There wasn't a mirror in the dressing room, so when Silena squealed when she saw me, I was obligated to look in the mirror to my left.

"No, no, no, no, no!" Silena warned as she saw my eyes sweep over to the mirror. "Let's do your makeup and hair first, _then_ you can look." She grabbed me by the shoulders and plopped me in a vanity chair as Annabeth walked out, about to check the same mirror I was. Silena yelled "NO!" and ran to grab Annabeth. I turned around to get a better look at her, and was completely shocked I'd actually see Annie in a crop top.

Apparently, she was thinking the same thing when she saw me. Her jaw dropped, as had mine, and we stared at each other, soaking in the new images. Finally, she stuttered, "R-Rey?"

"Oh," I started.

"My," she said.

"GOSH!" We turned to face Hazel and Piper, who had just walked out of the dressing room, looking at each other, then looking at us. "Girls," Silena gasped. "You all look so amazing! So chic, so-"

"Hot," Hazel said. "You all look so hot! In totally a best friend sort of way."

We giggled and I said, "Yeah, that spots already taken!" She blushed and I smiled at her, or as I liked to think, my future sister!

Silena rushed us over to the makeup stands as Mrs. Levesque came back in, calling,"Twenty minutes, girls!" She stopped dead in her tracks, looking at each one of us until her eyes met her daughters. "Oh, Hazel," she cooed, her eyes tearing up. "You look so grown up!"

"Thanks, Mom, but we're on a bit of a tight schedule?" Hazel rushed. "Hmm? Oh,yes. Twenty minutes until eight-thirty!"

We all gasped, and the makeover began. Hazel's mom started with her hair, while Silena showed Annabeth how to apply concealer and foundation. Piper, who was seatednext to me, had already started on her makeup, looking at her small hand mirror. "Uh, Pipes? Could you, um . . . " I asked. She laughed and got out of her chair, handed me a mirror, and grabbed three bottles of thick, skin toned liquid. She set them in front of me and pointed with a white sponge. "Concealer, foundation. Mix the medium shade with the tiniest bit of the darker one . . ." she trailed of while she mixed the colors in a plastic cup. "Voila!" She said. "Now, apply it like this . . ." She showed me how, and soon my face makeup was finished. I watched as Silena finished up Annabeth and briskly walked over to me.

"Oh, good! Pipes showed you the face makeup! Now, I know I had those colors lined out somewhere . . . ah, there!" She ran and grabbed them as Hazel's mom, who had finished her daughter's hair and face makeup and was starting Annie's, called out, "Ten minutes!"

Silena cursed and said, "Now, close your eyes." I did so, and in about three minutes, she said to open and pucker my lips. She rolled up a perfect tube of dark purple lipstick and swiped it across my mouth, telling me to make weird faces as I did. "Done!" She announced. She bounced over to Annabeth as Hazel's mother made her way over to me, since the Beauty Queen to my left was already spraying the last of her twisted hairdo Silena told her to do. Mrs. Levesque looked at a picture given to her by Pipes' fashion designer sister, and grabbed all my hair.

"Are you tender headed, dear?" She asked.

"No, ma'am," I replied.

"Please, Reyna, call me Marie."

"Okay." I smiled and she smiled back while I felt her brush my hair, braid a part of it, and through it in a high ponytail. At the same time, Silena finished with Hazel and went to the case filled with dozens of black shoes and pulled out four pairs after asking our sizes. She tossed me 4 inch black booties with a silver zipper. I slipped them on and Wise Girl asked, "Can we see ourselves now?" Marie chuckled while Silena smirked and said,"Sure, but you have three minutes. So hurry it up!" We all scampered to the mirror and gasped when we saw ourselves.

Piper's pink top, pink lipstick, and pink stilettos made her skin look more island-y and tropical, and the jet black eye liner against the deep browns of her eye shadow made her eyes even more complicated. Her hair has pulled into a really messy side braid, which really set off her look. Hazel had on black just-above-the-knee boots that still showed a little leg due to the shortness of the skirt, and the white of her shirt and coat stood out magnificently on her skin. Her big, gold eyes were done with black shadows and a gold eye liner, making her eyelashes really stand out, and her her was done in two, tight Dutch braids. Annabeth's eyes were done in an intense battle of greys and blacks, making a smokey eye with a dark silvery eye liner to give her a more dangerous look, because she was too damn innocent! Her hair was twisted up in braids and somehow neatly arranged into the perfect messy bun. And I could barely recognize myself; my hair was done in a very messy ponytail, with two braids going up either side. My face has never looked so clear, and my eyes had somewhat of a messy, classic looking style to them, with eye liner vaguely smudged under my eye, and the eye liner on top was extended in an extra long wing. _This is really us_ , I reminded myself.

"Girls, it's time to go! Eight-thirty!" Silena tapped her phone. We all group hugged and Silena whispered, "Wait till those boys see you!" Piper swatted her arm playfully as Marie said, "Yes, maybe Frank will finally have the nerve to ask you out, Sweetie!"

"MOM!" Hazel shouted. "How did you know?" She asked, looking around as to make sure he wasn't in there.

"I see the way you glance at each other, Hazel dear. I'm not blind, you know." She snorted. We all giggled as Silena dragged us towards the door, gave us once overs, then handed Pipes her sparkling leather jacket, and me a leather jacket that had short spikes on the shoulders. "Don't put it on," she advised. "Just place it over your shoulders, Pipes. Wait, now switch jackets . . ." We did. "Okay. Piper, keep it draped on your shoulders, and Rey, put it on . . . then shrug it off your shoulders so it balances on your back . . . perfect! Now, go and show everyone what you're made of!"

We pulled on confident faces, nodded at the two older girls, and ran out into the kitchen where we found the boys deep in conversation. Piper cleared her throat, and the guys did a double take; it was clear they were impressed, and I scanned over all their faces. Jason stared at Piper, which made me smile; Percy practically drooled over Annabeth, which made my smile grow even bigger and almost made me chuckle; Frank gazed longingly at Hazel, which instantly made me think of ways to torture my brother and best friend; and when my eyes turned to Markus, who was gazing intently at me. I felt my face slacken, and I stared back at his beautiful blue eyes that he got from his and Piper's mom. I started to lose myself in his enchanting eyes, when Annabeth clears her throat.

I snapped out of my reverie and said, "We should get going. We need to be there in . . . FIFTEEN MINUTES?! Do you have the CD?" Frank held it up while everyone scrambled for purses (issued by the lovely Silena Beauregard, Piper's half sister), jackets, money (loaned from the amazing Mrs. Marie), and car keys as we threw the door open and ran to our cars.

The next thing we knew, we were driving off to meet our destiny . . . or complete humiliation.

* * *

Yay! Done with dis chapter. Sorry, I know it's kinda short. Next chapter should be out soon . . . -ish. Thanks for reading! Please review!


	4. Four- A Setback and a Comeback

Heya, guys~

Chapter Four is out! I apologize for not posting in, like, two and a half months, but I've been busy with school work and family issues and stuff. Being the middle of seven is a challenge! Anyway, thanks for reading! Now, ON TO THE CHAPTER!

(Another thing- I have literally no clue what St. Mark Karaoke is; I honestly just looked up 'karaoke places in New York' and just started writing, so I apologize 'cuz this is probably nothing like this place at all since it is not a club, which I probably should have done in the first place...

Oh, well! Too late now!)

 _ **TheKeeperGeek**_

 **Disclaimer: I OWN EVERYTHING THAT HAS TO DO WITH PERCY JACKSON (in my dreams. All rights belong to Rick Riordan)**

* * *

 _ **Annabeth's POV**_

When we left the house, we felt and looked fabulous, and I'm usually a humble person. Now, we were nervously singing our song over and over again to make sure we had everything right. When we pulled up to St. Mark's, I could hear the music pulsing in the building. I cautiously stepped out of the car, pulling up my small top. Ever since I put it on I've felt uncomfortable, since it was shorter than anything I've ever worn before. Once we were all out of the vehicle, we all glanced at one another for reassurance, swallowed, and I led the way inside with the boys circling protectively around us in their leather-clad apparel, loaned by Silena (natch).

We pushed the door open and my vision was instantly lit up by the neon strobe lights and phosphorescent glowing signs that said things like "Restrooms this way," "Here to call your limo/cab," and "No sexual activity in the lobby; bedrooms in the back." I felt my eyes widen at that and I looked away. Quickly, I spotted my first celebrity. I stopped walking and tugged at Reyna's arm, pointing to where I saw her dancing.

She gasped and said disbelievingly, "Nikki Minaj?!" Piper and Hazel spun to where I pointed with their jaws hitting the floor. Sure enough, dancing on the glowing floor, was the Queen of Rap herself. My stomach released another wave of butterflies as Percy grabbed my hand and urged me forward. I heard Reyna mumbling something in Spanish that she learned from her time in San Juan. Since I had finished my Spanish courses, I decided not to translate what she was nervously saying to the other girls, who took French rather than Spanish and carried looks of confusion on their faces.

I looked at my phone at where they said to be, and the thought of how they got my phone number still amazes me and terrifies me. If they can get my number in a snap of their fingers, I warily thought of what they could do with a clap of their hands.

"We're here," I say as we stop my the bar. "Does anyone else feel like they need to pee their pants?" The other three girls raised their hands, and Piper excused us. "We'll be right back," she said, grabbing our hands and rushing us towards the flashing 'restroom' sign.

We barreled through the door to see a couple making out against the stalls. Clearly not expecting to be disturbed *cough* dumb asses *cough, they look up, apologize, and scurry off to the bedrooms. Once they leave, we each ran into a stall, and I heard retching noises coming from two of them. I came out first, so I took some time to look at myself in the large mirror in front of the sinks. Hazel came out next, looking green. I gave her a quick, reassuring hug and smile, and we waited until Piper and Reyna came out.

We slipped out of the bathroom and huddled next to the boys, waiting for something to signify that we should get on the stage. We waited for a minute until Markus said, "Well, looks like this is getting nowhere, so-" He grabbed Reyna's hand and started to pull her to the dance floor.

"What?" She exclaimed. "No, Mark, wait. I don't usually dance, especially not in front of a crowd like this-"

Markus chuckled and said, "Come on, Rey! It'll be fine; just us. No one else is gonna watch."

"Except us," Piper said.

"Yeah. We need to keep an eye on you guys in case y'all do anything . . . significant." I said with a wink, which makes both Reyna and Markus blush and look anywhere but each other.

"Well, if your that concerned, maybe you should come out with us, girls," said Reyna, a smirk twisting on her face.

My face slackened as I thought, _no no no no nonononononono._ Reyna could risk embarrassing herself even more than we were about to if she wanted, but I was staying put. Apparently, Pipes thought the same thing.

"Uh, love you Rey," she started. "But we're about to go on that stage, and I need all of my confidence and then some. So thank ya bunches, but-"

"Sure, we'll do it," Jason volunteered. Piper looked at him incredulously.

"Are you crazy? You want to dance with Nikki Minaj?"

"Not with her," he replied. "With the gang in a spot she could possibly see us."

During their quarrel, out of the corner of my eye I noticed Markus coaxing Reyna further to the dance floor. She looked frightened, dragging her booties on the tiles, but she was running out of reasons why she shouldn't go. I catch a glimpse at Hazel from the corner of my eye, thinking that she would be all over this. She looked nervous, but I could tell in her eyes there was nothing more she wanted to do than go on the floor and showcase her skills.

She caught my glance, asking a silent question, and finally said, "Screw it." She grabbed Franks's hand and marched up to Rey and Mark.

"We're going," she said, a challenge in her eyes, "Whether you like it or not. And Rey, you look like you like it, but wait till I beat the shit out of you on that floor."

Reyna looked perplexed, then a smirk climbed in its place.

"You know, usually I would say hell no, but screw tradition tonight; Hell yeah!"

I heard a squeal over my shoulder, belonging to none other than Piper McLean. I whipped around to see Jason carrying her bridal style towards the neon floor.

"JASON GRACE! PUT ME DOWN RIGHT NOW!" The other girls and I started cackling at her priceless face as Jason sped walked to her doom. I felt an arm slip around my waist as Percy whispered in my ear, "You think that's funny?"

My eyes widened as I realized what torture was approaching. "No, no Percy," I tried to reason with him, but I was too late. He swung me over his shoulder and took off as I yelled, "PERSEUS JACKSON! I WILL DESTROY YOU IF YOU DO NOT PUT ME DOWN!"

He didn't put me down.

Once we reached the floor, Piper was dancing uncomfortably and glowering at Jason, while the other girls were warming up with their guys standing around them. I slid off of Percy's shoulder and slapped him in the face. It felt good to finally rid myself of annoyance on him. The guys 'oohed' and the girls 'ouched', but I wasn't paying much attention.

"Ow! Hey!" He yelped. "What was that for?"

"That was for dragging me out here, Seaweed Brain." I complained. Then, with the obscene amount of courage I had built up, I kissed the spot where my hand had made his face red. "And that was for coming here with me. Thanks, dumb ass."

Percy looked stunned for a moment, and I was wondering what the hell I did. I just kissed Percy-freaking-Jackson! He probably had figured out my crush on him by now! My life was over.

After a moment passed and I was about to slink away and wallow in the self doubt and pity that was me, he smiled and said, "No problem, Wise Girl." I felt my lips stretch into a huge grin as I back peddled towards my friends.

Once I reached them I tried to avoid their smirks and Reyna's 'Fina-freaking-lly!' comment. Instead, I said, "Can you believe this is actually happening to us? I mean, were on the dance floor at Karaoke St. Marks, we're about to sing on a huge stage in front of, like, at least ten celebrities, and the guys are here with us. It feels like I'll wake up any second now and it will all be a dream."

"Yeah, I feel you," Hazel said. "It does seem a bit surreal."

"True," Reyna agreed. A moment of silence was issued, until Piper broke it.

"Come on, guys! Let's just have fun, dance! No sentimentalities. We're partying, and for the first time in a long time we'll get to be four teenage girls having fun on a Friday night! Not some super scholastic students who already have scholarships and college level classes. Let's be what we're supposed to be right now!"

Piper's tone didn't surprise me completely, back I was a bit taken aback by how right she was about who we were. Here we are, sixteen years old, already taking college courses, and Peaches and I already had scholarships to two huge schools. Pipes was right; we needed to be regular teenagers for a bit.

I smiled and said, "Hell yeah!"

One of my favorite songs came on, 'Classic' by MKTO. Even though it's not extremely new, it's definitely one of the best. And while I thought about it further, it wasn't played much anymore. I look over at the DJ booth where people were requesting songs, thinking surely someone must have the same taste in music that I do. But instead of my musical-taste-twin, I saw- you guessed it- Percy Jackson, winking at me with his gorgeous sea green eyes.

I gave him a smile and started to move with the song. The girls followed my lead, and soon we were all twisting in a circle, hopping and spinning and gliding around each other. Forming a flower-like formation, our backs together, we started moving like we have been here billions of times and didn't mind dancing in front of celebs and strangers.

I felt free, moving with the music as it invited me to dance. It took over my body, persuading my limbs to sway with its tempting melody. And yes, I finished high school English.

I turned and spun around with Hazel, laughing as she looped an arm around me and twirled me around. We then switched and I was swirling around with Reyna. We giggled and swung around each other, hips exaggerating our free movements. Last I dance with Piper, who grabs my hands and brings me into her arms, then lets me out. I repeat her motion and start randomly moving with whatever moves felt right. By the time the song was over, I was panting but smiling and unmistakable grin of put me pleasure. The girls and I are all laughing when I hear a mic being turned on. The guys hurry up behind us and we all turn our focus to the stage.

"What up, what up, what up! How're y'all doing tonight?" The DJ announces into his microphone. He chuckles as the audience shrieks with delight. "Great, great. Well, it's that time folks. Are y'all ready for some karaoke?"

The crowd shouts their approval, and the DJ continues. "Apparently, we already have a competition in the house; let's hear it for four of the girls we all know well. They're a regular here at St Marks, so please give a warm welcome to the Sirens!"

Apparently, they were known well. Most everyone whistled and cheered for our competition as they walked confidently on stage. They were dressed similarly to what they usually wear, except more... how do I put this... extravagant. Their plastic surgeries were barely hidden, as all of them were wearing extremely short skirts and slips for tops. Each had a face of makeup worthy of a clown, and a smug smirk worthy of a master criminal. Their eyes sweep over the crowd until Drew finds us and points us out.

"The girls were about to sing against are all amazingly talented ladies," she starts in a fake, compassionate tone as a spotlight dances on our group. "And we all are nervous about this competition. But we will try our best to earn your vote, and will be elated whether it is us or our friends that take the win. Best of luck to you girls!"

The audience claps politely in our direction, even though none of them know who we are. I plaster on my best smile and wave, pretending like I believe the sluts' little skit.

As the claps die down, the music starts, sounding all too familiar. And when Miranda "sings" the first note, Changing Ways gasps. A million thoughts fly through my head, not a single one clear, as I try to find a reason for this insanity. Reyna cursed in Spanish, Piper growled, and Hazel was just on the verge of tears as she said, "I knew I shouldn't have made a CD copy of the whole thing."

Rage and betrayal burns in my heart and eyes, even though I should've guessed even they were this low. I just couldn't believe it. How did their greedy, grubby little pig hands find their way to our vocal recording?

* * *

As I heard my voice sing on stage, silent tears met my eyes, mingling with the shock and hurt. I turn to face the other girls; Piper and Reyna both shake with fury as small tears roll down Hazel's face. I pull her into a hug, whispering to her, "It's okay; it's okay." A few of my own tears slid down my cheeks as I think, _It's over. No one will believe us if we told them the truth._

I let go of Hazel, wipe her tears, and give her a small smile before I turn to the boys. Each one of them was staring at the stage in a mix of shock, confusion, and anger. I place my hand on Percy's arm as he starts to charge forward.

"Forget it, Perce. No ones gonna believe us."

"Are you all alright?" asks an unmistakable voice. "You girls look a little wound up. First time?" I tense as I slowly turn around to meet the eyes of one of my role models, one I have looked up to since, well, forever.

I think I squeak when my jaw slung out of my mouth and skidded across to the DJ booth. I have zero idea what to say, so when "I don't know if I should bow down, or keep chanting 'I'm not worthy'" escapes my mouth, I still believe in dreaming.

Alicia Keys chuckles and says, "Well, I'm honored. Thank you, miss...?" It took me only five minutes to realize she was asking for my name.

I stumble over my words, so Percy steps in and says, "Annabeth Chase," grabbing my shoulders to keep me up right.

"Annabeth, huh? Nice to meet you. And you girls?" She asks my friends who are just as slacked-jawed as I am. Frank stands behind Hazel, following Percy's example as he says, "Hazel Levesque." The others follow in suit, giving Mrs. Keys the names "Piper McLean" and "Reyna Ramirez-Arellano." She nods and smiles, a knowing look in her eyes.

"You're all so sweet. Are you all couples?" My eyes widen as everyone says "No!" and looks away from each other. She nods but keeps the knowing look and smile.

"So," she asks after an awkward moment. "What can I help you with? Is it just nerves, or-"

"Actually, Mrs. Keys-" Piper starts.

"Please, just Alicia." She insists. I feel like I might faint from happiness overload until I remember what we were getting to.

"This will sound crazy, and like we are trying to sabatoge them, but... well... it's the exact opposite." As Piper replays the whole story, beginning with Starbucks and leaving out our feelings, and Mrs. Keys- I mean Alicia's- eyes grew.

"It sounds possible," she said at last. "Any form of sabatoge could happen at a karaoke match." She was silent for a while, then a stern look crossed her face. She took Reyna by the hand and my best friend almost fainted.

"Come on," Alicia says, dragging our now formed line towards the DJ booth. Our song was almost over, and the girls- I mean, _we_ \- are hitting our harmony pitch. The audience looks stunned, and pure elation courses through me at that point. Even though the words seemed to be coming out of their mouths, it was our voices singing.

As we rounded the booth, Alicia turns towards the DJ. "Michael," she starts. "We might have a problem." She explained the issue, and they came to an agreement as soon as the pulsing cheers arose from the crowd. Praise traveled from each person as I look around the crowd.

As my eyes travel around the club, a small screen mounted on the wall caught my attention: the karaoke screen. And when I saw the words dotted in the screen, I couldn't stifle my gasp quick enough, and it was enough to draw the attention of my friends, Alicia, the DJ Michael, and a few other celebrities.

As soon as I saw the ending slide, I hugged Hazel and said, "Peaches, you brilliant work of art!" A plan blossomed in my head as I whispered it to the small group surrounding me. Within a minute, we all understand the plan and move to walk on stage as the other girls start to walk off after thanking every one for judging.

Piper dashes forward and says, "Actually, girls, we would appreciate if you came back up on stage? We believe a confession is in order." The celebrities gossip amongst themselves as celebrities tend to do while the fakes strolled up the stage again with a false confusion plastered on each of their insufferable faces.

As Changing Ways takes our places behind the mics, I take a deep breath and pull mine closer to me. "Ladies and gentlemen, first off let thank you for being here to judge us tonight," I start, because everyone wants to hear that. The crowd whistles their 'your welcomes' as I continue. "I'm afraid there has been a bit of bad news. Earlier today, we were challenged by the Sirens for a friendly competition here tonight. We were supposed to create our own songs, so it would be understandable if you didn't recognize the track. We had ours ready, but it appears it has already been presented to you. Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to introduce ourselves. We are Changing Ways."

The crowd approved, although still confused as to my earlier statement. I continue: "These girls have been my best friends since the fifth grade, and to me that's saying something, considering we're sophomores in high school. I couldn't do anything without these girls; I don't know where I would be without them." My voice catches as Hazel rubs my back and gives me a smile.

"But enough about that," Reyna continues for me. "If you please, look back towards the karaoke screen, where the words to an original shouldn't be." The crowd gasps and looks behind them, pointing out to each other as if no one had told them and they were just finding out.

"Do you see the name in the bottom right hand corner?" Hazel asks the crowd. "What does it read?" More gasping and growing outrage from the crowd.

"Exactly," Piper tallies up. She calls over the growing noise. "Ladies and gentlemen, the track the girls were _lip-syncing_ to is our original song, written, produced, and sang by us, _Who Says._ "

I look over to the stunned girls on the ramp to the stage. They were shocked we got through to them, but Miranda quickly replaced her on coming scowl to a look of hurt.

"How...how could you?" She stutters, forcing tears to her eyes. "We thought you were our friends, we thought that you-"

"Would let you get away with your little scheme," Reyna finished with a small sneer, her slight Hispanic accent growing with her fury. _Damn, girl,_ I think to her. _Never thought I'd see you this angry._

"And about the whole friend part," Piper throws in. "Michael, if you please." The DJ winks at her and plugs in her phone, pulling up her Instagram page. He scrolls down towards a recent photo of the whole group in our swimsuits at Piper's house, smiling at the camera and posing.

In the description, Piper had written _Love these guys! Summer break, here we come!_ I smile at the memory of Reyna being pushed in the pool by Markus that day, which comes next. Her face is plastered with pure delight as she yells in the video, "Markus! Markus, no!" She squeals and flails into the pool. The video shakes slightly as Piper laughs from her spot in a lawn chair, and she sweeps the camera across the yard at all of her laughing friends. Next, Hazel tossed into the pool by Frank, then me by both Percy and Jason because I was struggling too much.

After Percy jumped in the pool after me, Jason walked towards the camera with a smirk on his face, and Piper started yelling, "No, Jason! No!" She tried to run with the camera, but Jason had literally sweeper her off her feet and ran towards her huge pool. She squealed as Jason cannon balled in the pool with her, and the sound became muffled. Piper turns the camera around to her smiling face as she pushed herself to the surface.

"Happy May 21st! Make your last week of school your best one!" She shouts at the camera. The video ended as the crowd cooed.

"Now," Reyna concluded with a slight blush. "Would you please scroll down to the comments?" As he did so, she asked, "Hey, Drew? Isn't your insta QueenDrew101?"

"Yes..." she started. Her eyes widened as she realized what we were about to show. "Wait, no! That's not my insta-"

But it was too late. On the screen was one of the many hate comments the girls and I have been receiving. This one said particularly, _"Damn it! I thought the water might've washed the dirt off the povertized girls. Oh well, guess they'll still be tracking mud in school tmrw!"_ The crowd grew startling angry. Michael scrolled up to the comments on the picture. Again, a nasty comment was posted by- yeah, you guessed it.

It read, _'Wow! You had to sneak in there to get that pic? That's lowww- even for you!'_ by MirBear. The next one said, 'Right, MirBear? The broke-ass bitches think they can get away with anything b/c their unnoticeable. Shame...' from RachElizaDare. The crowd started a shouting match as Michael turned off the phone and handed it back to Pipes.

"So," she said after stashing the device in her jacket pocket. "In all honest, who do you believe? The Sirens, or Changing Ways?"

The shouts of Changing Ways had never sounded more fantasized. Cheering started and and turned into a roar as Reyna said, "And Drew, honey, povertized isn't a word."

Another track started, the one we gave Alicia to set up with Michael.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Hazel says, commanding the attention of our audience. "Since you have already heard our other song, Who Says, we have another original to sing for you now. We hope you enjoy it; introducing... Little Me!"

The crowd cheered as I started to sing:

 _ **Annabeth** \- She lives in the shadow of a lonely girl_

Voice so quiet you can't hear a word

Always talking but she can't be heard

 _ **Hazel** \- You can see it there if you catch her eye_

I know she's brave but it's trapped inside

Scared to talk but she don't know why

 _ **All** \- Wish I knew back then_

What I know now

Wish I could somehow

Go back in time, and maybe listen to my own advice

I'd tell her to speak up, tell her to shout out

Talk a bit louder, be a bit prouder

Tell her she's beautiful, wonderful

Everything she doesn't see

You gotta speak up, you gotta shout out

And know that right here right now

You can be beautiful, wonderful

Anything you wanna be...

 _ **Reyna** \- Little Me_

Yeah, you gotta lot of time to act your age

You can't write a book from a single page

Hands on the clock only turn one way

 _ **Piper** \- Run too fast and you risk it all_

Can't be afraid to take a fall

Felt so big but you looked so small

 _ **All** \- Wish I knew back then_

What I know now

Wish I could somehow

Go back in time and maybe listen to my own advice

I'd tell her to speak up, tell her to shout out

Talk a bit louder, be a bit prouder

Tell her she beautiful, wonderful

Everything she doesn't see

You gotta speak up, you gotta shout out

And now that right here, right now

You can be beautiful, wonderful

Anything you want to be

 _ **Annabeth** \- Little Me_

 _ **All** \- Little Me, yeah, yeah_

 _ **Hazel** \- Tell you one thing I would say to her_

 _ **All** \- I'd tell her to speak up, tell her to shout out_

Talk a bit louder, be a bit prouder

Tell her she's beautiful, wonderful

Everything she doesn't see

You gotta speak up, you gotta shout out

And know that right here, right now

You can be beautiful, wonderful

Everything you want to be (x4)

 _ **Piper** \- Hey, Little Me _

As soon as the song was over, the crowd erupted again into another bout of applause, whistling and cheering. It was even louder than it was when the other girls performed. I was beaming with pride, and I knew that the other girls were too. Maybe this was it, I think. Maybe this was our big break!

"Wait a minute! Wait just a minute!" A voice screeched into one of the microphones. I turned to my left and saw Miranda speaking into the mic instead of Hazel, who was clutching her gut. _She punched her,_ I thought, and I almost exploded.

I ran to Hazel and asked, "What did she do?" She waved me off declaring that she was fine while sending a murderous glare at Miranda.

"What the hell do you want, Miranda?" She asked venomously.

The bitch tried to pull off a hurt face, and said into the mic, "How do we know it's not them who's sabatoging us?

"Like this," Piper declared. She motioned forward, and Markus approached the stage with a small satchel. She opened the bag and pulled out the familiar book.

"As much as I would rather hide this, this is our song book. It has the lyrics of the songs you heard tonight on pages 31 and 57. If you don't believe me, come up and look."

The audience indeed wanted to look, so when they started to stampede the stage, me and the girls scurried out of their way to group near the edge of the stage. They focused intently on the pages, studying each lyric and discussing the topic amongst themselves. The tension was almost unbearable; the answer was so close, so tangible, I just wanted to take it from them and accept it.

After a few moments, which felt like hours, a blonde woman in finally came up to the microphone.

"Hey, girls! Here's the thing: we're are, like, _that_ close-" she makes the universal sign for 'inseey teensie' -"to earning our belief, but we need actual proof of which voice sounds like which person. So would you girls, both of the groups, mind singing a cappella? With the mics turned off."

Changing Ways gasped in sync; we've never done anything like this before! Well, obviously we haven't sang in front of a crowd (with the exception of the boys and stuffed animals), much less sang acappella! I thought I was going to have a mental break down because of the sudden stage fright that washed upon me. I started scanning the dance floor in hopes of some encouragement, and I found those brilliant pair of sea-green eyes that I could hardly take my grey ones off of. Percy gave me a sweet smile and a thumbs up, and that was exactly what I needed. If Percy and the girls thought I could do it, then who says I can't? Please, do _not_ say the Queen Bitches.

"We'll do it," we said together. I looked over my shoulder and saw the girls with a newfound determination set on their faces. I shoved the last of my ever growing fear into my stomach, grabbed Reyna and Piper's hands, and walked towards where the mics would be. The audience had returned to the floor, where they waited impatiently. I gulped down the bile rising in my throat and turned towards the girls, asking a silent question.

When we came to a conclusion, Piper said into the one mic we were given to speak, "We decided to sing the last part of Little Me with a few things added in." The crowd whistled their support as Pipes walked down the ramp to give the mic to Michael. I caught a glimpse of the brats as she walked back up. Each of them had a look of disgust and pure hatred, all except one.

Calypso looked extremely guilty, and though I convinced myself I imagined it as it was gone a second later, a small, silent tear rolled down her cheek. I shook my head to clear it and focused back on our task at hand. We looked at each other for a clue on where to start. We got the part down and I started with my first phrase:

 ** _Annabeth:_** Oh, Little Me

 ** _All:_** Little me, yeah, yeah

I kept an eye on the audience as we sang, and I saw realization and amazement strike their faces. I felt a proud smile start to tug at the corners of my mouth, but I quickly replenished my irritating thought of, _We're not done yet!_

Someone in the crowd shook their head and looked down to his phone, dialing a number and calling it. Oh my God. Was everyone faking enthusiasm and this person knew that we could wait and there was something better he could be doing? I was about to freak out, completely loose my cool on stage, but I remembered that we still had more chances to impress them.

 _Hazel: Tell you one thing I would say to her_

As we went into the chorus again, I glanced at the other girls. We had decided to cut the last part short because of the special touch we planned on adding- the part that none of us exactly wanted to do, but decided was necessary to prove that we are more than what we claim, or are willing to claim. After the second time we finished the chorus, Hazel started the runs.

Her strong voice completes a tricky set of runs that got many whistles and whoops. Next was Reyna, who started in a semi low tone, then rose with a beautiful run and crescendo that earned the same if not more applause. Piper, who's powerful voice pushed its limits and surpassed most everyone's expectations, did an expecially hard set of runs that ended at a hard note for her second-soprano chest voice, which left me to pick it up as a soprano. I took a deep breath, then belted out the note that had already became familiar with me when the girls and I would have competitions that would debate our skill at music.

When I hit the note, I stayed there for a second, then rose to a higher one for another, and then my highest one for, and yes I timed it, eight seconds, which turned out to be ten seconds of holding high notes that even my friends couldn't complete at that point in time. I finished my part with a quick run down to my ending note, and when I broke off the note, the Cheshire Cat couldn't even rival the smile growing on my face.

The crowd was going mad, whistling and screaming their amazement and enjoyment. The girls and I finished our last harmonic, Little Me, and the crowd when insane. A standing ovation (even though they were already standing) signaled their thoughts and feelings, and for some reason, I started to cry. Yes, you're probably thinking, _The stereotypicality of this is painful._ Oh, well. You're the one who decided to listen!

I saw 'the Sirens' and their looks of hatred, astonishment and embarrassment as they managed to slip out of the place without being noticed. For some reason, I came to find this enlightening. We were being noticed, and the populars were hiding away as if they were nothings-nobodies like... well, us.

I dabbed the tears away from my eyes, careful not to smudge my makeup. I turned and saw the other girls were doing the same with the same amount of pride in their expressions. I heard someone clunk up the stage, and when I turned my head, I almost started crying again.

Nikki Minaj and Alicia Keys walked up the ramp to us, both with microphone in hand. "Girls," Nikki started. She paused for a minute, and my fear started to bounce back into my thoughts. I reach for Piper, who stood by me when we were singing, and grasped her hand. What if they thought we cheated again? My mind thought up more excuses as I turned I noticed that the girls and I have made a chain. We start to huddle again. Ms. Minaj noticed this a gave us a warm smile.

"Now we know for sure, that _no SHIT it was you!"_ The crowd roared again, and I laughed out loud. We all turned and hugged each other and cried tears of pure elation.

Alicia said, "Very well done ladies! And I hope you weren't in hopes of avoiding paparazzi, autographs, phone numbers, and record deals, because their all in line at the end of the ramp waiting for you! Whaddya say, ladies? Are you ready?" At this point, I think all of us were trying to hold each other up from fainting. We looked at each other, and looked back at the superstars, one of which were handing us her mic.

Reyna took it in her shaking hands and said, "Oh, hell yeah!" That got an uproar from everyone on the level below us plus the two pop stars standing with us, giving us all hugs. Nikki soon filed us towards the ramps and had us split up into stations.

"All right, people. We're gonna make this real easy 'cause these munchkins gotta get home." She earned some chuckles from this and carried on. "First, we'll start with Piper and Annabeth at paparazzi, Reyna at autographs, and Hazel at reporters." We moved to our destinations, and once I got to the cameras, they all started flashing. One of them directed us to a white wall that they had already started setting up with lighting and makeup. I looked at Pipes, who had a bit of makeup smeared from crying, and decided that I must look worse. I excused us and ran to the lady and man at the makeup set.

"Excuse me," I said in my politest tone. "Would you mind..." I trailed off, gesturing blankly at our faces. They took one look and said, "Oh, sure thing Dearest. I'll get you fixed up in no time!" I decided that I liked these kind people already.

The girl swirled some powder on my face, fixed my eye makeup, added a touch more lip, and sent me on my way. Piper and I walked over to the wall and struck some poses. I say that I the most serious way right now; I have no other way of describing striking poses.

After the photo shoot, which I actually some what enjoyed,

I moved to reporters. After I answered somewhere around 36 questions, (I gave up counting when I got to 20; call be lazy, but...), I finally moved to autographs. I signed countless until I got to one that particularly interested me. With a picture that was taken while we were performing, Percy Jackson came up to the small table I was sitting at.

He was grinning ear to ear as we asked, "Hey, Wise Girl. Can I get your autograph?" I smiled shyly and nodded, shaking my silver Sharpy and scribbling my signature on the picture. I put a small heart next to my name and added,

'Thanks for being there for me, Seaweed Brain.'

I handed the photo back with a short, "Here ya go!" He looked at it and smiled, reading the short note I scribbled down. Luckily, he was my last signature, so I didn't have to stop taking with him. I stood up and crossed my arms, shuffling closer towards him. He looked up and, for the first time, I noticed an odd expression in his eyes. It was a soft, tender, caring look. A look that almost made me think that it was... love. But that couldn't be, could it? It doesn't make sense; he should be with one of the popular girls, not with a super nerd like me.

I find my self staring into his mesmerizing eyes. The depth to them would rival any ocean, the green challenging the most beautiful of greens, the mischief and daring edge disrupting the most playful of jokers. I wanted to understand his eyes, the strange and gorgeous sight that graced me when I got the gift to look into them. I suddenly wish I was one of those girls that could wear high heels and a shit ton of makeup. I wanted to have to chance to be with him, to earn his love and respect.

I hadn't realized how close we were moving towards each other. My eye lids started drifting shut, preparing me for something I wasn't ready for. _Wait, WHAT?!_ I hurriedly snap out of my trance with wide eyes and a heart beating too rapidly. I glance up at Percy, who had done the exact same thing.

"S-sorry, Perce," I stuttered. He just nodded, staring at me for a little. Fortunately, we were saved when Reyna's voice called out, "Annie, we need you!"

I heaved out a breath I didn't know I was holding, and said, "Sorry, gotta go!" then trotted off to find the girls. I tried to focus on getting through the crowd, but my thoughts kept my busy. _I was about to kiss Percy,_ I thought. _Percy was about to kiss me!_

Hazel found me and shouted, "Come on, Annie! You take literally for _ever!_ " The managers laughed, and I soon realized what was happing: we were getting a record deal.

"Don't call me Annie, Peaches." She blushed as the the managers started asking us a few questions.

This night could honestly not get any better. Or so I thought.

We were in the middle of chatting with the producers, managers, and record labels as a group of people walked forward. But naturally, not just any people. A team of the most well known celebrities that made people extremely known walked towards us. Piper, who was standing to my left, shook my arm and started muttering, "Catch me, catch me please."

Standing in front of us was Thalia Grace, major producer and studio manager, Leo Valdez, extreme special effects for stage and vocal attributes and also stage manager, and the one and only Apollo Solace, founder and owner of Solace Records, _the_ number one record company _IN NORTH AMERICA!_ I don't know how I managed to stay on my own two feet. They stopped about five feet away from us, effortlessly flawless. I'm sorry, I just realized how bad I'm fangirling...

The thought hit me. That person on the phone... I gasped. That was Leo Valdez... calling Apollo. At that point, I thought I had shit my pants.

Apollo gave us a warm, flirty smile and said, "Hey there, ladies. I heard that we had a case of trying to figure out a record company and managers, am I right? So I was wondering, if you're willing to work hard and prove your worth-"

"Yes!" The word plunged out of all of our mouths at the same time, seemingly slightly stunning the celebs in front of us. A smile quickly grew back on their faces though, as Leo Valdez said, "Alright then, chicas! Let's get this show in the road! I hope you don't mind making a small aperence on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon tomorrow..."

"Not at all, Mr. Valdez," I said, utterly shocked at how fast this was moving.

"Great! And please, Leo's fine. Or if you really want, the Flaming Hot Valdez!"

"Uh, I'll stick with Leo."

He shrugged. "Eh, worth a shot. Also, you probably won't be able to make it to school in Monday."

"Why not?" Rey asked, clearly shocked this would take more than a day.

"Because you'll be working on your new album. Duh." He smirked at our slack jaws and and shocked expressions. "We don't move slow at Solace Records."

I'm sure that my jaw fell out of its socket, it open so fast. Wow. We really were moving fast!

"Fine by me!" Hazel said estatically.

"Perfect! If you don't mind calling your parents and telling them that your coming with us, or whatever excuse your probably going to make, you guys should stay at our guest penthouse tonight."

"Aaaand there goes my chill," I said. "A penthouse, a record deal, working with Leo, Thalia, and Apollo... dreams really do come true."

Thalia laughed and said, "If you work hard enough, sweetie. If you really work hard enough."

We started to walk towards the exit as a few voices could be heard behind us. The boys were coming over to ask about what happened, by the looks of it. Then I realized, _I might never get to hang out with the guys again..._

"Hey, Leo?"

"Hmm?"

"Can you guys hold up a bit? We need to talk to some friends for a sec."

"Sure thing, but you've only got about a minute and a half. We got to get to the pent at 12:00."

"Thanks." I grabbed the girls arms and hurried towards the guys.

Once we reached them, Markus asked, "What happened? Where are y'all going?" The girls seemed to realize what I did, and solemn looks crossed their faces. They each picked their crush and moved away from each other a bit, leaving me to drag Percy a little further from the door.

"Well?" He asked, worry crossing his features. "What happened?"

I took a deep breath and said, "We got a record deal..."

He then smiled a huge smile and gathered me in his arms. "That's amazing, Wise Girl! I'm so proud of you guys... why're you so upset?"

I sniffled as the tears that I knew would fall started dripping from my eyes. "We... we..." I stuttered. Finally, I got out the words. "I don't know if we'll be able to see each other again..." His arms suddenly went ridged, and I knew that he was shocked and upset.

We were quiet like that for a moment, me in his arms, until Thalia yelled, "Come on, girlies! Time to go!"

I gasped as I turned to Percy and said, "I'm so sorry, but there's something I need to tell you. I wish I had time but... I don't. I'm out of time. I should have told you earlier." I spill out my feelings as they break through the dam that I've built up for years. He looks at me with a confused expression, and Thalia yells, "Ladies, let's hurry!"

"Percy, I... I... I- Can't do this! Please don't hate me!" I don't know what over came me, but I couldn't stand not seeing him for months. So I gave him the thing I dreamed he'd one day give me. I leaned forward and pressed my lips against his.

For a moment, nothing happened. I was scared that I was right, that he didn't love me the way I loved him. But then his lips moved under mine, and we were kissing. In all the cliche romantic movies, first kisses with your true love are described as fire works. I always thought that they were exaggerating to make sound more romantic and sappy, but I know the truth now. It really was like fireworks on New Years Eve- a brilliant display of colors, lighting up the sky as if it were a painting that could be constantly changed and never compared. This- this 'true loves kiss,' it was real, and it was magical.

I pulled away as Thalia yelled, "ANNABETH! Let's GO!" I stared at Percy for a bit, then whispered, "I love you, Percy Jackson," with tears rolling down my face. I turned and darted towards the girls, not daring to look back at Percy's face. I met them at the entrance, with the girls in the same shape as I am.

I laughed and said, "Well, you guys look terrible." I got a few chuckles out of this and many sad looks.

Sorry about this, girls, but it's what we have to do. You want this, don't you?"

I looked at the girls. Their faces said it all. We were ready to take on anything thrown at us, and we weren't looking back.

I looked at Thalia and said, "We want this more than anything." She gave a curt nod and soft smile, and we followed her to the limousines waiting outside, one for us and the other for Thalia, Leo, and Apollo. We stepped inside without looking back. There was no way I was going to face the past when I had to focus on my future, and there was no one who was going to stop me.

Not even Percy Jackson.

* * *

 **YAY! Finally done! And may I say this one took for _ever!_... mostly because of my procrastinating. So I finally put Leo in there. BAM! Now the girls have to perform on Jimmy Fallon and nail it, come up with a bunch of songs from the album, deal with a bunch of school work, stress over the guys and deal with the stress or stardom...**

 **Best of luck to them!**

 **Also- since no one is really all that truthful and loves with a passion to blame others, I'll tell you that I have no idea what Nikki Minaj and Alicia Keys are like. I just assumed they're incredible people.**

 **Bye Bye!**


	5. Five- Is that a Ten-Four?

**Hello, peeps-**

 **So at this point, I had: left at 3:00 am to go to Panama City Beach, Florida, with my father, sisters, brother, and step mom; when we we're coming back to San Antonio, I had been called** **by my mother and told that my great-uncle, who was technically my grandpa (since I never knew my real one) had died that morning; when I got back home with my mom, we went to Target and Bass Pro Shop, to prepare for camp (and I went to Camp Travis, which was amazing; then we went to my Meme's house, (who is my great aunt) where we met our cousins, aunts, uncles, and family friends to comfort each other and finish all the leftovers; the day after I went to my Big Daddy's (that's what I called him, don't judge) viewing with my mom, sister, and cousins; then we got lunch, and then my sister and I went to camp (like I said, I went to Travis, but she went to the first camp, T Bar M), which was a Christian camp, so that was kind of weird; after camp, which lasted for a week, I had to watch my brother for a few hours while my parents went out; the day after I had my first vocal lesson (whee!) and then I went to the orthodontist; next day, I went _back_ to the orthodontist to get prepped for my braces; I got a spacer; we went to the mall with my grandparents to pick out church dresses and I somehow met my best friend there so we all went to more stores than I thought we were going to (which means, there was about 8 or so stores we _didn't_ walk into); then I learned I wasn't supposed to get my spacer before braces; next day, I visit my great aunt so she wasn't lonely; then had a sleepover with cousins; then went to my mom's friend/work partner's son's birthday, and that was about... a day ago. So, if you actually read all of this, hopefully you cold see I've been a little busy the first, what, 3 weeks of summer? So since I've been busy, I am a sleep deprived little authoress, so this chapter may not be the best or the longest. Apologies from the future. **

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**_SHOUT OUT!_**

GreekGeek1092: **Thanks so much for the feedback. I made some adjustments in the earlier chapters correcting Reyna's look. I also tried to incorporate the Hispanic sound for her in the last chapter. Thanks for catching that!**

* * *

 **And with that, my lovely readers, Chapt** **er 5 arrives.**

 **- _TheKeeperGeek_**

 **.**

 **.**

 **.**

 **DISCLAIMER!:**

 **Me: Whaaat? What makes you think there's supposed to be a disclaimer? Everything is mine; ALL MINE!**

 ***said in a power crazy tone with evil cackle at end***

 ***everyone stares, tapping foot impatiently***

 **Me: Fine. Maybe the characters and whatnot... _might_ belong to Rick Riordan...**

* * *

 ** _3rd P.O.V_**

 _Flash!_ "Reyna, Reyna over here!" _Flash!_

"Piper! Piper McLean!" _Flash! Click, Flash!_

"Annabeth, would you mind-" _Snap!_

 _Snap! Shutter, Click._ "Miss Levesque, would you explain-" _Flash! Flash! Click, Flash!_

Leaving the club was nearly impossible for the four new musical discoveries. A few moments ago when they were about to step into the door frame, Thalia handed them all sunglasses and ordered them to look down, don't get side tracked, and no matter what- make it to the car. Hazel, being the curious little monkey she is, almost asked why, but nothing except speed walking was accomplished as dozens of camera's and reporters huddled around them, trying to get pictures and answers out of the hustled girls. A few of the bodyguards around them had to gently push the reporters back away from the new band. As soon as they made it to the limo, they pulled themselves inside and slammed the door closed.

The car ride to the penthouse had hardly any conversation other than the simple,"Pass me a Sprite," or, "Hand me some popcorn." Nobody talked about what happened in the club; they were worn out from the stressful night and painful goodbyes. Hazel was quick to remember what Leo said about calling the parents. She decided to call her mom first. With encouraging looks from her friends, she dialed the number. The call picked up on the third ring.

"Hi, honey! How was the karaoke match?" She asked immediately.

"It was... great." Hazel recounted their stressful and difficult plight.

Her mother squealed on the other line. "Oh, Hazel sweetie, that's amazing! I'm so proud of you! Have you told your father?"

"I thought he would be there with you. I wanted to tell you guys the next part together." She swallowed nervously and glanced at Reyna, who was sitting across from her. Rey gave her a shaky thumbs up, as she was scared to face her mother and step father herself. Piper gave both of their hands a reassuring squeeze, and Hazel continued as she heard her dads familiar bass voice say, "Hey there, sweetheart!"

"Hey, daddy! How was your day today at work?"

"Eh, same old same old," replied Pluto Levesque as he got situated with his wife on their living room couch. "What's up with you? And why aren't you home already; are you staying over at one of the girls' places again?"

"No sir... there's something I gotta tell you guys." Hazel took a shaky, deep breath as her parents asked what was wrong. "The girls and I... well... we got a record deal."

She heard the sharp intake of breath on the other line as her parents asked, "Are you serious, honey?"

Hazel said, "Yeah, momma," with a laugh, and soon she heard whooping and cheering on the other line.

Her dad said into the phone, "THAT'S MY GIRL!" while her mom started clapping with a few tears leaking out of her eyes.

"Oh, Hazel," she said solemnly. "I'm so sorry."

Pluto gave his wife a confused look, then a look of understanding. "Oh, sweetheart..."

At the Levesque house, all was still as Hazel decided to speak the truth.

"Mom... Dad... we accepted it."

At first, she wondered if they hung up. Then she received a FaceTime call from her father. She squeaked; she wasn't sure what to do. Then she looked up at Annabeth, who was going to call her mother next. Annabeth saw the frightened look on her friend's face, then got up to sit by her. Once she wedged herself between Piper and Hazel, she motioned for Reyna to do the same.

"We'll do it together, Peaches." Hazel drew in a breath, then answered the call. Immediately, her father's unmistakable face popped into view. His coal black hair and eyes identify him as the owner of the most profitable banks in the U.S.

He sets his stern gaze on his daughter as Marie pulls herself into the frame with a nervous expression.

Pluto's gaze softened as he looked at his only daughter. "Oh, Hazel. You look so..." he teared up. At this, Hazel rolled her eyes and muttered, "Seriously," under her breath. Her dad's eyes cleared and narrowed.

"But I see your attitude hasn't changed a bit," he said, earning a muttered "Burrrrn," from Reyna.

"Hazel, did you honestly accept the record deal?"

She shifted uncomfortably and mumbled, "Well, technically we all accepted the record deal-"

"HAZEL SAVANNAH LEVESQUE!" He exploded, making all the girls jump. "Do not be a smart ass with me right now. Did you sign the record deal?"

A small, scared tear rolled down Hazels face as she answered, "Yes."

Her dad's facade broke and emotion swelled to his face. A delighted yet pained look crossed his face. "Why wouldn't you tell us first thing, honey?"

"I thought you would be upset at me," she replied, more tears slipping from her containment. "I didn't want you to be angry with me. But I really want this, Dad. We really, really want this."

His face became emotionless once again. He his eyes seemed to be debating his options. Finally, after a few antagonizingly silent moments, her father says, "Then I have one thing to say."

Hazel's eyes grew, slightly afraid of what was coming. But when her dad's face broke into a grin, a hopeful look flitted over her face.

"You _have_ to come home for the holidays, and visit as soon as possible. And call your mother at least once every week; she'll get sick not knowing what's going on with you. I'm assuming your not spending the night over here?"

"No, we're going to Mr. Solace's guest penthouse." She says, excitement pounding through her.

Pluto's face slackened. "S-solace?" he stammered.

Hazel giggled and said, "Dad, our record deal is at Sunny Records."

Mr. Levesque looked like he would faint. "Oh, sweetie. I'm so proud of you!"

Hazel blushed profusely and murmured, "Thanks dad, but I gotta go. Tell momma I said I love her?"

"Will do, sweet peach," he called as Hazel flinched. The other girls started silently cracking up as he finished with, "Love you!"

"Love you too, daddy," Hazel forced our with gritted teeth. She hung up the call and shot a look at the girls, who let their wild laughter out of its traps. "Shut your traps and continue with the calling."

Annabeth decided she would go next to get it over with. All her life, she had planned to be an architect; it was her dream! Well, she thought it was her dream. Her mother wanted more than anything an heir to her company, which brought more pressure on Annabeth. Now, having to tell her mom about what her dream really was, was extremely rough for the aspiring artist.

Her father picked up on the second ring.

"Annabeth?"

She took a sharp breath, then answered, "Hi, Dad."

"Annabeth! Where have you _been?_ We've been worried sick; we thought something had happened. Are you okay? Are you hurt? What happen-"

"Dad! I'm fine, thank you. We, um, went to karaoke. We were challenged by those terrible girls at school, so we went... and... yeah."

Fredrick Chase was quiet for a bit, then asked, "Well? Did you win?"

Annabeth stuttered for a bit, unsure of why her father really cared about her musical ventures. "Umm... yes. Yeah, we won, Dad.

"Well, that's wonderful, darling! Great job! Now, back to the issue: why aren't you home? Are you sleeping over at one of the girls' place, 'cause you know your mother and I have no problem with that. You just have to make sure you tell us where your staying and when you're going to be back."

"I know, Dad, but... well... we're not really staying at one of our places. We're staying at... a much fancier place. A private place. Um... Dad... uh..." she stuttered. She looked at her friends for encouragement, and each of them gave her a thumbs up and a small smile.

"Well, Annabeth?" her father asked impatiently. As she was about to answer, the familiar _ding-ding_ of her houses alarm went off, signaling that someone was home.

"Did you find her, Fredrick?" questioned Athena Chase, Annabeth's mother and prestigious owner of Owl Architecture. She then asked, "Is that her?"

Fredrick had obviously nodded, as Athena came to the phone seconds later. "Annabeth?" She asked in a shrill tone.

Annabeth winced as she replied with, "Hi, Mom."

"Annabeth! Where were you? Where _are_ you? We were worried sick! As your parents we have the right to know where you areand what you're doing. Are you depressed? Is that why you're sneaking out? Are you on your period? Do you need-"

"Mom!" She exclaimed, slightly embarrassed. She had the phone on speaker, so she was hoping that her mom wouldn't be too much. But with her luck, Mrs. Chase was exactly how she would be on a regular day. Even though Athena Chase seemed cold and steely, always focusing on her work (which _was_ the case most times, with the exception of steely), she became extremely sensitive when it came to her family's safety: especially Annabeth. So when the girls started giggling a bit, her mother snapped to attention.

"Who's with you, Annabeth? Hello? Who is this; who's with my daughter? Have you kidnapped her, because so help me, God, if you do _anything_ to my baby I will-"

"It's just us, Mrs. Chase!" rushes Reyna, clearly eager for Athena _not_ to finish that sentence.

"Yeah, don't worry, Mrs. Chase. We promise we won't hurt your daughter!" Hazel throws in.

Annabeth's mom sighed audibly and said, "Thank goodness. Hello, girls. I completely trust you with Annabeth, but I hope you understand how worried we were! You _have_ to tell us where you're going, or I'm going to tell your parents and explain to them that you're sneaking out without permission!"

"We went karaoke-ing tonight, Mom." Annabeth explained, taking her mother off speaker. "Mrs. Levesque knew, and I would've told you guys but we hardly had time." She recounted their adventurous night, and when she was done her parents congratulated her.

"Well _done_ , sweetheart! I bet you did wonderfully; well, obviously you did. I'm so happy for you dear!"

"We... we also... got a record deal."

Her mom gasped and her father said, "Annabeth! That's amazing, darling! Congratulations... oh, wait."

Athena said, "Oh, Dearest, I'm so sorry, but we need to focus on Yale..."

At the Chase house, all was still as Annabeth decided to speak the truth.

"Mom... Dad... we accepted it."

A moment of silence passed, and then Mr. Chase asked in a dangerous tone, "You did _what_?"

The nervous daughter gulped and shakily said, "Yes."

"And why, might I ask, would you do that for?" Athena questioned, her steely tone growing back. "Are you seriously about to destroy the dream we worked so hard for? Your dream is only a few years away; are you seriously about to crush it?"

Annabeth's tone changed severely, as she was starting to grow impatient with her parent's ignorance. "Because, Mother, I wanted to. _We_ wanted to. And I called you because I was hoping that you would be supportive and understanding, not cold and steely like you are with your business partners. A mother and father are supposed to support their child's dream, not send it away like another thought you 'shouldn't' deal with. So I ask you, Mother, did Grandma through your dream away, huh? Did she send it to waste in the depths of Tartarus so it could rot, so she couldn't deal with it anymore? Yale isn't my dream, Mom, it's yours, and I'm tired of living the life you've set for me; why can't I pave my own road? I want to sing; singing is one of the best things that happened to me. I want to do it with my friends. And if you can't support that, then sorry. I'm done with unsupported dreams, and unsupportive parents. Oh, and screw Yale."

The line went silent for a second, and poor Annabeth was frightened to the core of what was going through her parents minds, and enraged by them all the same. As the list of punishments ran through her head, everyone else held their breath. At last, her mother spoke.

"Annabeth," she stated in a breaking voice, "you're going crazy; come home right now. And if you reject one more time, young lady, then you will leave me with no other options."

Annabeth sat stunned; she thought she had a chance to win her mother's understanding. Another wave of rage engulfed her as she said, "Wow. Wow, I actually thought you would have the piece of mind to change your shitty way of support."

"Darling, please! You need-"

"You've done nothing but yak about how important Yale is, how important my dream is... but you have no idea what it's like to have a dream."

"Annabeth, you listen to me-"

"You inherited the company you own and built an architectural empire on it, earning billions of dollars yearly. During interviews, you always mention how dreams are made reality if you nurture it properly. Well, Mom, my girls have supported my every move one hundred percent, which is more than you could ever admit. So I apologize, Mother, if my attitude isn't in check. I'm sorry that I decided to chase my dreams instead of follow the rules you ever-so-strictly imply for my life. I'm sorry, Mom, that I loved you enough to let you control my life. I loved you more than anything else on this terrorizing planet, and because of that, look where we are. I don't want to fight with you, Mother, but please, _listen_ to me and maybe we can agree to something!"

"ANNABETH MARILYN CHASE! Do NOT talk to me that way. I've had it with you tonight. Get your ass home and you are grounded! You will miss school for a week and _all_ of your projects will be completed at home, at the proper time as supervised by your father and I. I'm kicking you out of the music program and the school musical so that you'll focus on your work and not some silly shit someone planted in your brilliant head. If you do not come home now, your punishment will only be worse!"

Tears spilled from Annabeth's eyes. "Then I'm sorry, _Mother."_ She couldn't help but spit the last word, allowing poison to lace the syllables and break them down rotting love. "I'm not coming home. I'm staying at Apollo Solace's guest penthouse tonight, and working on our first album first thing in the morning. We're also premiering on Jimmy Fallon's Tonight Show at 10:50 that evening, in case you wanted to skip the channel. Goodbye, Athena."

Annabeth slammed her thumb on the end button, leaving the call at 16 minutes and 37 seconds. She tossed her phone on to the carpet of the car and hunched over in her lap, letting more trapped tears flow in sobs that pinched the hearts of the other girls. They immediately moved to her side, murmuring comforting words while she freed her rage, regret, fear, sadness, and relief.

"Just talk about it when you're ready, m'kay?" Piper reasoned with her. The other girls nodded as Annabeth kept crying. Even in some of her darkest times, she could always count on her parents to be there, but now those encouraging and inspiring parents are nowhere to be found.

After a few minutes and back rubs, Annabeth calmed down enough to tell them what her mother said. At the end she teared up again, causing Piper to envelope her in an even tighter embrace, and Hazel and Reyna to seethe like overheated boilers. Everyone in that car had experienced some rough times with their parents, but Annabeth's relationship with hers was one of the best. The girls knew how much her parents meant to her, and to hear about them break their bestie's heart like that made them absolutely livid.

After they all calmed down, everyone looked at Reyna expectantly and sympathetically. Once she realized that they thought she was going to call her mother, she flushed and explained, "I had all ready explained to Mom that I was sleeping over with Hazel, and I thought I should tell her after the album was released so she sees that if it went well, maybe she would agree quicker so that we could continue?"

Piper nodded her agreement and said, "That was my plan as well, although I seriously doubt that the fam would care, aside from Silena." She tried to joke with a weak smile. Her parents are the extremely famous, extremely rich, one and only Tristan and Aphrodite McLean, who pretty much never have time for anything other than his acting career and her world renown fashion line, so Piper doesn't know her parents as much as she should. Silena, who is four years older, practically raised her, so she was much closer to her than she was to anyone else in her family.

At that time, the girls had pulled up to the apartment building and started to grab their purses. Luckily, none of the paparazzi had followed them, so they made it there nice and safe from the blinding flashes of camera bulbs. They were all extremely worn out, so they let the body guards half carry them to their penthouse, which of course, had to be at the top of the apartment. While Reyna was mentally complaining about this to herself, she also remembered, that _all_ penthouses were at the top of the building. She groaned softly and continued waiting for the stupid elevator to finish its route.

Once she heard the _ding!,_ they clutched each other's hands and walked through the frame to reveal a beautiful room with eggshell white walls, light grey marbled floors, shaggy white rugs, gold trimmings, gold-plated fans, beautiful windows that were almost the size of the whole wall, and a balcony that overlooked the city. Once they finished gawking at the beautiful space they would be living in for the moment, they grabbed the fluffy and plush gold and white blankets and curled up on the pristine white couch they were thrown upon. They were all too tired to go upstairs, and they really didn't want to be alone in separate cold, unfamiliar beds. They threw the pillows from the back of the couch on the floor, and grabbed the smaller decorative pillows to rest their heads on. After taking off their purses, jackets, shoes, and some uncomfortable pieces of their clothing, the quartet drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep, hoping it would take their minds off of the heartbreaking events of that night.

* * *

 **So I am beyond extremely tired and I need sleep, so I kinda cut this chapter short. Please don't get mad at me! Oh- and the song in the last chapter was Little Me by Little Mix, full credit to them, those amazing girls. Also, quick note- I will probably be using a lot of songs by Little Mix, because their four-part harmonies are incredible. Goodnight (good morning) my beautiful people.**

 **||PEACE AND LOVE||**


	6. Six- Rise and Shine, Pop Star!

**?WHAT'S UP, MY PEOPLE?**

 **I really don't have anything to say besides I'm extremely sorry for not updating and please don't send too many mental slaps towards me; after school started again I've be swamped in work, so it's gonna be hard for me to update as often as I'd like.**

 **Even though I haven't been able to this summer anyway... But know it's Thanksgiving Break! YAY! Now I can try to update more!**

 **On to Shout Outs!**

* * *

 _ **SHOUT OUUUUT!:**_

 **I would love to thank SkipperLucas and jessicatan304 for adding my story to their favorites. Like... how? Thank you so much! And then The-Excess-Dreams, Codyderrow, and (again) SkipperLucas for following this story. I love you all! Thank you again!**

 **Sooo... yeah, we're just gonna get on with this.**

* * *

 **DISCLAIMER: Do I really need this...?**

 ***crickets***

 **I thought not.**

 **PJO and HoO are too good to belong to moi- it's that simple.**

* * *

 ** _Reyna POV_**

I woke up the next morning huddled on the couch, tangled in a mass of golden and white blankets. I blinked the sleep out of my eyes, rubbing them as I sat up. My mother had trained me to wake up at eight o'clock every morning, and since I had gone to bed at around one this morning, it came as no surprise when the girls were still sleeping when I woke up.

I stretched my arms and legs and rolled off of the huge ottoman I was laid across and sat up on the floor. Once I was alert of my surroundings, the painful stabbing of a head formed as I remember what happened last night. I looked down at myself, at my beautiful, sexy outfit I got to wear last night. I smiled as I thought of how I felt when I first saw myself in it. It's definitely one of the more expensive looking piece I own. It's probably almost as expensive as that Gucci dress Piper's mom got me for Christmas that I never wore-

'Oh... flip.' I thought as I remembered, that even though we were in this fancy ass place, WE HAD NO FLIPPING CLOTHES!

I groaned louder than I expected and accidentally woke up Piper, who had been sleeping right next to me. "Rey?" She grumbled half asleep, rubbing her eyes and sitting up groggily. "What the heck are you-" She stopped abruptly. She groaned and rubbed her temples. "Last night really happened, didn't it?"

"Unfortunately, Beauty Queen." I grumbled. She groaned even louder, causing Annabeth to stir, and Hazel chucking a pillow at our general direction, grumbling, "Shut up, Piper! Can a girl sleep?"

Piper scoffed and threw the pillow back, hitting the other girl on the face. "Okay, that's it." Hazel declared as she sat up abruptly and prepared her arm to throw two pillows at Piper. As her eyes adjust to the new setting, she slowly pulls down her arms and whispers to herself, "Oh... yeah."

She slowly lowered her arms and dropped her pillows as Annabeth sat up, groaning and blinking herself awake. "Jeez," she said, exasperated. "First morning of fame and we're already at arguing at-" she checks her phone, which was lying on her shoes and purse- "8:15 Saturday morning. Although, it's probably a good thing, since Silena texted and said Apollo, Thalia, and Leo would be here in thirty minutes..." she stared harder at the screen, then gasped, "TWENTY-FIVE MINUTES AGO?"

With a sharp yelp, we all scrambled to tidy up the couch and ourselves, throwing on the last pieces of uncomfortable clothing and sprinting into the bathroom to attempt to fix up our faces and hair. Once I rushed in, again I was breath taken by the gorgeous pale golden walls, huge mirror, quartz floating vanity, and pristine white and gold trimmed towels and rug. After a finished marveling at the beautiful sight, I snapped back into 'rush mode' and took out my ponytail and braids with much difficulty. I raked my hands through my rats' nest hair and wet the tissues that were provided on the toilet, and used them to wipe away the excess makeup that was smeared on my face.

I rush out into the enormous living room to see the girls folding and refolding the blankets and adjusting the pillows so they looked picture perfect. A familiar _ding dong_ sounded, making us all jump.

Hazel ran over to the buzzer and said, "Come on up," let go of the opal button, and squealed, "Omg there here, there here, there here! EEEEEEEK!"

"Peaches, try to chill," Piper said, a nervous look on her face. "They're just coming to talk... I think. I hope..."

"Guys!" Annabeth said, smoothing out the last of the wrinkles on the couch. She turned to face us. "Why are we freaking out? We've experienced worse things then this- what's the worst that could happen? Please don't answer that it was rhetorical!"

I chuckled, drew in a deep breath, and set a determined look that wavered a little when the elevator _ding_ ed open. Out walked an already dressed Thalia, wearing a sharp, black buisness suit with a black tote and schedule.

"Morning, ladies." She said. She couldn't hide a slightly amused look when she saw our hastily put together selves. "Are you ready for today?"

"Uh..." Hazel stuttered. "We... kind of didn't about bringing clothes, and the other girls won't fit my size, and we really would prefer _not_ going to another house but mine, so..."

She just chuckled and said, "Then you _are_ ready for today. Follow me to the car, please."

I looked at the girls but saw the same amount of confusion on their faces. I shrugged and followed Thalia into the elevator, slowly descending towards the the doors slide open, we scurry to the car to try and avoid any kind of extra attention. We made it to the car, and for the first time in a long time, I was glad we weren't noticed.

Once we got in the car, Thalia tossed us grey hoodies and warned us to put them on. I didn't question her and slipped on the hoodie, as did the other girls. We drove in silence for a while while Thalia tapped away on her phone. We finally reached our destination, which apparently was a run down looking building. Thalia got out like she was simply getting out to visit a friend, and when we hesitated, she motioned to us with her hand. "Come on out, ladies."

I hesitantly opened the car door and stepped out, the other girls following me. I couldn't help from thinking, 'If I become a part of a serial murder, I will haunt Thalia for the rest of her life.' Our manager led the way to some rickety stairs and started climbing, giving us no other option other than to follow. She stopped at a door more splintered than the others and knocked four times, slow, fast, fast, slow. We waited for a second when the door creaked open and a hoarse voice whispered, "Come in, ladies."

"I knew it!" Piper yelled. "Sorry, but I refuse to die today. I have too much to live for."

The whisper chuckled and said, "God, Pipes. Don't even recognize your own sister. I feel so loved."

"SILENA!" We yelled then tackled her in a bear hug. She laughed and apologized for her voice. "I started feeling bad when I left Hazel's, and my throat took the fall. But that's not why you're here. Come in!"

The space was small and quaint, but very cute. Not something I'd expect at all from a McLean kid, but I kept my mouth shut. She led us to this biggest room in the space. It was covered in a whole bunch of fabrics, sewing utensils and sketchbooks.

"Now, I know that _technically_ you fit the sizes I gave you last night, but we still need to get your exact measurements for later uses and your wardrobes. It may take a bit but afterwards we-"

"Wait," Annabeth interrupted. "Are you our stylist?!" I could sense we were all holding our breaths as Silena made a face that was somewhat like a grimace.

"Weeeeelll..." she drawled out. "Maaaayybeeee?"

"YES! NO FREAKY NEW PEOPLE WHO LIVE ON POT!" Hazel exclaimed, causing us to crack up.

"Nope," Silena said with a bright smile. "Just me."

"Which is perfect!" I answered. "I'll go first."

"Great!" She beamed, then led me to a block around 4 inches off the ground. She wrapped her measure around pretty much every inch of my body, her body occasionally racking in coughs.

"Are you sure you're okay?" I asked her. "You seem like-"

"I'm fine, Rey," she said, waving her hand around. "It's just a little cough. I'll be over it soon."

I glanced at her a little longer, then shrugged and stuck out my arms. She was done sooner than I thought. I hopped off of the small pedestal and went to pick out a few of my favorite colored fabrics out of the box labeled in Silena's loopy handwriting, 'Silk and Cotton Blends'. I found some beautiful purples, blues, pinks, tans and whites, grabbed a few, and moved on to the next box. The measuring portion of the day lasted only a few minutes later, and when we all got our fabrics, we headed out of the rundown apartment. We all got in the car with fabrics piled on our laps an drove off to the next place, making light conversation on the way.

The next place we went to looked like something I expected from this day of errands. It was a big, white factory that had no name and was slightly hidden by tall oak trees. The chauffeur parked the car and helped us with all the fabric. We walked up the sandy looking steps and to the huge glass double doors.

"I know the shack we were at earlier wasn't exactly what you were expecting," Silena admitted. "But maybe I can impress you girls now." She pushed against the doors to reveal the factory bustling with busy people running from machine to machine. A huge staircase led to four other floors, all supporting huge loads of sewing materials, mannequins, and original and chic designs.

"This," Piper said, dumbstruck, "is incredible, sis!"

"Yeah, I know." Silena answered back. "Now let's prep you for Jimmy Fallon."

"Wait." Hazel started as we began to walk up the stairs. "Does Jimmy even know who we are and that we're gonna be on his show tonight?" Thinking about it built up even more anxiety in my chest.

"No worries, Hazel." Thalia assured her. "Jimmy knows who's showing up. Leo called 'em last night to make arrangements. You're also doing an interview with him I forgot to tell you girls about?"

"WHAT?!" We shouted.

"Please, it's totally fine. He's gonna ask you how you met, when you started singing, basic things like that. You'll be totally and completely okay. We'll also give you basic etiquette for professional interviews."

"Oh. Okay. I feel a little better." Hazel breathed. I giggled with Piper as we entered the third floor where we were greeted by two super pretty girls who waved a hello. I waved back as one of them grabbed my hand and started holding up fabrics to my face and hair from the pile I grabbed at the shack earlier. She separated them into piles that I assumed were yes and no piles. Silena gave her a clipboard with my measurments on them.

"Hi! Reyna, right? My name is Rebecca, but everyone calls me Becca. I'll be helping design your outfit for tonight. If you have a preference of fabric, design, color, shade, anything, don't hesitate to tell me. This is your outfit, so I want to make it as 'you' as possible. To start, let's pick the outfit style, shall we?"

Pretty bubbly, but there's really nothing wrong with that I guess. I smiled at her and said, "Do you have any suggestions?"

She looked a bit taken aback, as if she hadn't gotten that request in her whole career. She shook her head after a few moment and beamed, running me through a list of ideas. We agreed and argued what was and wasn't inappropriate for a 16 almost 17 year old beginning pop star going to a major interview and performance on live T.V. In other words, not childish, not slutty, but just right. We finally decided on a design: a belted skirt with a jacket of some sort. At least, that's what her drawing portrayed.

"I have to communicate with the other girls' designers to discuss the theme of the outfits. This is just a plan. Anything you want me to throw in the planning?"

I thought. "Probably no leather or pleather. That's what we did last night, so it'd probably be good to try something else to show we have variety."

"Brilliant thought, and I'll put it in!" She left, joining two other designers who were talking and showing off creations while another girl trotted up to them from Hazel. I caught her eye and she waved with an overly excited face. I chuckled and waited only a minute more before we were all motioned by our designers to join them.

"Sorry, girls," one said with green eyes and red hair in a messy ponytail, "but we need to know a few more things before we start designing. Usually we can piece something together on our own, put you're also performing tonight, so we need to know what song you're planning on doing."

I sucked in a breath and looked at the girls. "Ah," Piper said. "We haven't... really... picked out a song yet..."

"Oh, heavens," one said with dark skin, crystal blue eyes and a British accent. "Would you like our help choosing one, then?"

"Sure," Piper said. "Thanks, Rita! Peach, you still have the flash drive?"

"Yep," Hazel answered, digging around in her bag until she held it up proudly. Becca led us to a table with a laptop on it and logged in for us. Once she was in, she let Hazel plug in the drive and pull up all our songs. She brought out headphones, but her designer, Amber, laughed and shook her curly, brown hair.

"Hazel, everyone here has heard you sing and absolutely adores y'all! No need for that." Hazel looked slightly surprised and muttered, "I still can't believe that happened." She put up the headphones and pulled up a list of our songs.

"Huh," Ruby, the red head and Annabeth's stylist, thought aloud. "Is it bad that I thought you'd have more than seven songs?"

"Well," Annabeth said, "it's not like it's our don't exactly have a bunch of time for this, unfortunately."

"What do you-"

"We're practically the mix between your stereotypical nerds and nobodies, so we're super busy with curricular stuff, and don't really have that many friends." I admitted.

"Oh, honey-"

"Anyway," Hazel interrupted and pointed to three of our songs: Cannonball, Who Says, and Little Me. "These were already performed, so I thought we should do something no one has heard before. Songs I think we should do include About the Boy or A Different Beat. What do you girls think?"

"I agree," Annie said. "You know how I always lean towards About the Boy, but A Different Beat is a really good choice."

"Yeah, A Different Beat is awesome, but I feel like About the Boy is the one for tonight." Piper said.

"Totally," I nodded, "but let's let them listen." The other girls nodded and Hazel clicked on About the Boy and we all listened in. After both songs were played, Hazel paused the list and sat back other girls pulled away, Becca holding a disappointing look on her face. I swallowed as a pit of nerves started forming in my stomach.

"Was it that bad?" I asked her with a grimace.

She looked shocked. "Hell to the no; that was incredible! I can't believe that you girls are only 16 and 17. I'm disappointed that there isn't more to listen to!" That threw away the nerves and left a huge smile on my face.

"Well," Hazel said, "we could play the other two-"

"As awesome as that would be, we honestly don't have the time. You four will have to leave in..." Amber checked her watch and gasped. "45 minutes!"

"I'll grab another drive for you." Becca said as she jogged off to find one.

"Wait, what do you mean?" Piper asked. "It's only 10:45 and Thalia said that we head for the show at 8:30. We should have plenty of-"

"Time is the one thing you'll always want more of as a singer," Rita said. "The more you get into the job, the more you'll understand."

"And this is your, what, second stop?" Ruby asked.

"Uh... yeah?" Annabeth slowly answered.

"Then you have, eh, three more minimum."

"WHAT?! Whyyyyyyy?" Hazel whined.

"Here we are!Let's do this. Y'all still have, what, at least three more stops, right?"

"AAAAAHHEHEHEHEHH!"

We all laughed at Hazel, then got serious. They started talking in terms only designers would use, and I relied on Piper to translate for me. She said that they were only talking about styles and fabrics, which only cleared up about 50% of it. They finally consulted us about it and portrayed our designs. We all agreed something striped and fall-ish would do. Piper suggested some kind of heel, and since we're all pretty much the same height (not really short, but not super tall), we agreed. We went back to our little stations and Becca and I drew out the real thing, which was only a little different than our original. We did a black and white long sleeved sweater tucked nicely into a black, button up mini skirt with black knee high boots with a 3 inch heel so the were still easy to dance in, which made me realize we didn't have the slightest clue how we were going to perform. I groaned but just smiled and said nothing when Becca asked me what was wrong. Within 30 minutes, we had everything picked out from the materials to the stitch. I thanked Becca and told her I'd see her later and joined Piper and Hazel by Thalia, who was waiting by the stair case.

"Yes. Done under time. Where next; I'm ready to roll!"

"Wow, Rey," Hazel smirked. "I've never seen you this excited to do go out and actually do stuff."

"At least my attitude's in check. Perk up, Peach! It's gonna be fun!"

She sighed. "Fine, I'll try."

Piper beamed. "This is going to be so awesome. Finally, Annabeth!" The queen of being late finally joins us while waving to Ruby.

"Alrighty, let's go and do today."

"Great!" Thalia smiled. "I'm sure your outfits are gorgeous. I've grabbed some sweatshirts and Nike shorts and tennis for you girls to wear while we're still out. We can't be too careful. Once today's over, you can decide for yourself if you want to go incognito when you go out or not. The changing rooms are around the corner. After that, at least three more stops then we're headed back here to grab our clothes and head to Jimmy Fallon."

"I'm still not over the thought of more than three stops today. That's way to much work." Hazel pouted. She saw Thalia's face and said, "But it's all gonna be worth it! Let's go, ladies!"

Annabeth giggled at her and followed Hazel, who was striding towards the changing room. I rolled my eyes at Piper who shrugged, and we followed. Once we were changed, we decided we'd give Thalia a fashion show. Piper strutted out first and struck a pose as Hazel followed, then me, and finally Annabeth. When we were all out, we put our hands on our hips and popped our heads at her. She chuckled and said "Perfect. Now let's get on with it." We walked out and once we got into the car she handed us small bags to keep our things in.

"Why do we need these? We only have our phones, which we can stow in our pockets-"

"Well, now you each have $10,000 cash in your bags for our shopping trip, which we'll head to after facials." I gasped and unzipped the bag to find four beautifully stacked piles of cash under a purple designer wallet. When I unzipped it, I saw gift cards to stores I've only heard of in commercials and couldn't possibly dream of going to. Apparently, the other girls thought so, too.

"Whoa," Annabeth breathed. "That's a lot of money... and this is a super cute wallet!"

"I thought you'd like it." Thalia said, and from then on the ride was silent. We pulled up to a super fancy salon and stepped out. We let Thalia lead the way into the place and as soon as I walked in my shoulders relaxed; I had no idea they were even tensed. An hour later, I was refreshed and comfortable. Don't get me wrong, the extractions and waxing hurt like hell and my face looked like a glowing red beacon, but I still felt refreshed. I thanked the sweet lady who did my facial and headed towards the massage room. Another hour later, I walked out feeling like a whole new person. We were already in the mall, so we started the shopping spree Thalia said would last 3 1/2 hours. We were all super excited to run around like crazy people. I grinned and bent over like I was at a track lineup. I saw Hazel and Annabeth drop down beside be and Piper start in a running position, all of us smiling crazily.

Thalia shook her head and said, "Not so fast. I've decided to make this a little more... interesting."

"Huh?" Annabeth asked, getting out of her stance in into a crouch.

"Ladies, welcome to Saks Fifth Avenue, one of the most well-known malls in North America. This building was founded in 1898, making it the original and the real deal. Obviously, since this mall has been open for over a century, has 10 floors, a cinema, and a ginormous food court-"

Hazel gasped with a huge smile.

"-that we won't be getting to today-"

Hazel frowned and _hmph_ ed, crossing her arms and looking away.

"-I thought we'd do a little timed treasure hunt."

She looked back.

"Ah ha! I have a list of things you _need_ to have." Thalia said. "Get out your phones. The items include: three short sleeved shirts, two long sleeved shirts, three jackets of any sort, three pairs of jeans, two pairs of leggings, five pairs of shoes, five pairs of socks, and two pieces of jewelry. This is the short list, and this is the minimum. You can buy more as long as it's in your budgets and you get these necessary items. Are we good?"

"Wait, let me see," Piper said. "Three short sleeved shirts, two long sleeved shorts, three of any kind of jacket, three pairs of jeans, two pairs of leggings, five pairs or shoes, five pairs of socks, and a piece of jewelry? Wait, no, two pieces of jewelry. And we can buy more as long as we're in budget?"

"Got it! You can spend as much time as you want in the store, but for every store you go in, you have to try something on whether it's sunglasses or a dress. Replacing items: a dress for a long sleeved shirt, a headpiece for a pair of shoes, and two scarfs for a piece of jewelry. Every piece has to be in style and suiting to and, if it comes to it, someone else. We good?"

"Yep!" I responded. "I'm so ready."

"Great, because we wasted around ten minutes getting to the center, and five minutes on instructions, so we really only have about 15- wait..." she stopped for a count of four seconds. "3 hours and 14 minutes for this."

"AH!" Piper and Hazel yelled.

"Oh, I'm so ready!" Annabeth said with a gleam in her eye. She looked at me and said, "Stay around the same area? I may need you."

"Definitely." We fist bumped and I said to Thalia, "Give us a countdown."

"Okay. Ready?" We all nodded. "Five... four... three... two... one..." We waited. I turned to Thalia.

"Really?" She smiled and shrugged. "GO!" I started to follow Piper, who was sure to know her way around here- or any mall- because of her mom. On the way, I got a Face Time call from 'Wise Girl.' I picked up and said, "Hey, Annie. Give me a second and wait where you are. Try to find a coat store; that's gonna be the hardest."

"Roger that, General." Her staticy phone voice said sarcastically. I rolled my eyes and hid behind a large potted plant and watched my friends search her phone and the large map in front of her. She studied it seriously and texted something in her phone. _Smart little chica,_ I thought as she trotted away, staring at her phone. Once she was far enough, I started my mission. What can I say? I get my amazing sense of battle strategy from my war hero of a mother.

"'Kay, we're good. You find anything yet, Annie?" I looked at the map and must've seen around 300 stores, maybe more. I zeroed in on a few of the more well-known stores like Pink, Hollister, American Eagle, Express, anywhere I could find cute jeans and adorable shirts. The scene that Annabeth was at crackled on my phone as she took herself off mute.

"Besides a trench coat that would look killer on you and boots that are so your style... what about you?" I smiled as we continued planning and shopping. We met up an hour and a half later at Forever 21 with five bags each. I had all shirts and a dress, both leggings and two pairs of jeans, two jackets, three pair of shoes, six pair of socks, two pieces of jewelry and two scarves. She had all her jeans, all leggings, all but one shirt, two skirts, all shoes, all socks, two scarves, and one jacket. We finished our shopping with 20 minutes to spare and $5,000 left, so we each got adorable purses and nice perfumes then headed over to meet Thalia. Much to our surprise, Piper and Hazel were showing up the same time we were. We all stared at each other and started laughing. It seemed like no matter what we did, we were never meant to outdo each other.

"Great job, ladies!" Thalia congratulated us. "Now let's see what'cha got!" We followed her to a huge lounge room and sat down on plush seats. **( quick a/n: sorry; i don't live in new york idk if they have this at saks fifth avenue it just sounded fancy so this went in here hehe)** "Who wants to go first?"

"I'll go." Piper said. She showed her items and I kept telling myself how she knew all of this because of her mom. Hazel went next, and her stuff was killer, too. Annie went, then I went, and I have to say- I'm pretty proud of us. I think Thalia was too.

"Well done! You girlies did awesome. Let's get to our next stop. We have less time than I thought." We rushed to the car, packed our bags in the trunk, and speeded off to another salon. While we were in the car, I realized that I needed to call my mother. I hadn't explained where I was or when I was going to get home. I guess I really hadn't thought it out that far. Luckily, I've had plenty of experience lying to my mom. She picked up on the third ring.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Mom. I'm so, so sorry I didn't call you earlier; I've been super busy and-"

"No, sweetheart, I understand. I know how eager you are to get the midterms project done. Are you staying again at Hazel's house tonight?"

"Well... not really..."

"What do you mean 'not really?' That isn't an answer, _chica_. And don't lie to your mother. Where are you staying?"

I sighed. "If I told you, you wouldn't believe me..."

I heard a short laugh on the other side of the phone. "Try me."

I sucked in a breath and said, "Apollo Solace's guest penthouse..."

The line was silent for a moment until the Face Time chime sounded. I yelped and dropped my phone on the floorboard. Scurrying to pick it up, I set a brave face and felt the girls clutch my arms and Thalia sending a thumbs up and small smile in support. I pressed the green button and the screen cleared to show a very concerned Bellona Ramirez- Arellano.

"Reyna; it is you! Why in the world would you say that? There's no way in the sensible life that is ours should you have to pretend that you're going to stay at Apollo Solace's guest penthouse-"

I heard gasping on the other end of the line before I cut in. "Mom, there's something I need to tell you about, but I feel like I should do it tonight after you watch the Jimmy Fallon show at 10:50. Please watch it, Mom, so I can explain easier and maybe you could understand me better when I tell you. Please, Mama, I'm begging you." I hadn't call her Mama in years, and she responded exactly like I hoped she would. She softened a bit and nodded.

"This better be good, Reyna, or you will not enjoy the outcome. Understand, _mija_?"

"Yes, Mama. Thank you!" I was about to say my goodbyes and 'talk to you later,' but she had something else to add.

"Hold on; someone wants to talk to you." _Uh, weird,_ I though, but I stayed on. I wasn't going to disobey orders from my mother, especially since she's willing to listen to me tonight. I heard her open a door and hand off the phone with a 'here you go' and the door closed again. All the girls relaxed their grips and leaned in to see who was going to answer. I thought it might've been my grandparents trying to surprise me, but when the all too familiar face of my beloved step-brother popped into view with a scowl and Hazel squealed and fell into Thalia's side of the car, I figured out what it was: an ambush by the person I wanted to avoid the most. Well, second most.

"Reyna Avila Ramirez- Arellano-" Frank started, then the phone was grabbed by someone else, stopping to show Percy and Jason staring at the screen, causing Annabeth and Piper to join Hazel. Finally, the camera landed on the most beautiful face I think I've ever seen, and I hate it. The soft, brown hair that sculpts his face and his gorgeous blue eyes that melt me every time I look at them killed me at this moment. But the worst thing I see is the pain and anger in his clouded eyes that made me freeze up and gape. His voiced wavered and sounded like he'd witnessed something he couldn't shake. I couldn't breath as Markus said the word, the only word that made me freeze for another reason.

"Reyna?"

* * *

 **So, am I'm kind of an asshole for the ditching for almost six months and the cliff hanger that I have no idea when you'll find out what happens? Yes, yes I am. You already know what you know, so A Different Beat and About the Boy are by Little Mix. As I told you guys (and girls), I'll be using these amazing queens a bunch, so if I don't disclaim the songs, assume they're Little Mix. Love to all, and Happy Thanksgiving if I don't post until then. Au Revoir et Merci!**

 _ **~TheKeeperGeek**_


	7. Seven- Nothing is Fair in Love and War

**/WHAT UP?/**

 **Heello. I'm back. In da flesh. Before the six month mark. I know. Incredible. How chu biz? I biz gucci. Yes, this is because I have nothing for my introoo... oh wait.**

 **For those of you lovely people who have read this before, I just realized that I had randomly come up with the name 'New Creation' because I had a song stuck in my head that had those words in it. So I thought I should change the name, and the name is changed in every chapter. New name= Changing Ways. Why? Well, read on and see, my brilliant peples!**

* * *

 _ **SHOUT OOOOUUUUUUTS!:**_

Hey, so when I first started writing this chapter, I checked my story stats and **100 OF YOU AMAZING AND BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE HAD READ MY STORYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY WITHIN 9 HOURSSSSSSSSSSSSS!** **THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOUUUUUUU!**

And another special thanks to **thesweetscentofbooks** and **Ouarz** for following this story, and **thesweetscentofbooks** again for adding this to your favorites. I'm so so happy you like the story; THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!

* * *

 **DISCLAIMER:** Why do I need this again? Why can't I just pretend that it's all mine and nobody else's?

 **Characters, Camps, Gods, Worlds, Heavens, Nymphs, Satyrs, Magicians, Shabti, Magical Creatures of Any Sort, and Giant-Sized Rick Riordan With His Arms Crossed And A Stern Look:** *Tapping foot (technically feet) impatiently, waiting impatiently for ignorant girl to figure out life*

 **Me:** Ooooooh, yeah. Because that's mean and I'll be trampled by the whole world if I claim the characters for myself.

* * *

 _ **Piper's P.O.V**_

When I heard my brother's voice, I knew that Reyna would freeze up and just completely break, so I grabbed the phone and hung up on a protesting Markus. No way was I letting Reyna put up with that before a show this important. I put her phone back in her small, black backpack and grabbed her arm, apologizing with my eyes. She looked up at me and smiled, shaking her head and assuring herself as much as assuring us.

"I don't even remember what happened. Did something happen, girls?" We smiled at each other and lifted our chins.

"'Atta way, ladies." Thalia said. "Nothing to bring you down today, nothing to bring you down forever! Don't let it get to you. Now, let's get you glam for your performance." We cheered as we pulled up to the salon. We flipped up our hoods and marched out of the car like girls on a mission, and I guess we were in a way. Thalia flung open the doors to the empty salon and yelled, "ELISE! Changing Ways is here and we only got an hour MAXIMUM! It's 6:00 and we need to leave Silena's by 7:30 which means we want to be there by 7:00 but that's not going to be the case because we're here LATE! ELIIIISE!"

A skinny blonde ran into the room. I assumed it was Elise and gave her a smile. She smiled back but flinched as Thalia said, "Macee? Where is Elise?"

"Sh- she's in the back. She should be out soon though-"

"No need to yell and act crazy, _mon cher ami,_ I'm here." An tall, beautiful French girl with and ombre walked out of the back with a smirk and said, "Let us hurry! We don't have much time!" Thalia rolled her eyes with a groan and shook her head. I laughed and followed Elise to a washing station and sat down. Elise sighed, exasperated, and yelled something in French that I don't really wish to repeat. I cringed and Elise had seen me. She asked, "Do you speak French, my girl?"

"Yes," I responded. I then realized that she had asked me in her native language and I had responded in the same tongue. She smiled and apologized, and continued massaging shampoo in my hair. Suddenly, three girls around Macee's age, probably ten, walked in with four girls around Thalia and Elise's age from the back. Elise gave them directions, and they dispersed, one of the younger girls coming over to me, and an each older and younger girl pairing off dragged of my friends to washing stations.

Macce came to my station and was absolutely adorable. She asked, "What colors would you like your nails, ma'am?" I was internally awing at her because she might be offended and weirded out if I awed out loud. I thought about her question: what color indeed?

"I think a nice pink will do. And could I get an acrylic, please?"

"Definitely!" She said as she ran off to get the color. Elise turned off the sink and rung out my hair, wrapping it in a towel as she led me to a fancy hair station with a foot tub and a massage chair. _Nice,_ I thought as I sank into the chair. Elise unwrapped my hair and the little girl came back with a few different colors, and I chose the kind of peachy shade. I relaxed as my hair and nails were done, totally peaceful. As my nails were drying and the girl moved on to my toes, Elise asked how I wanted my hair and make up. I thought back to the outfit I designed with Rita: a short, white sweater-crop top with high waisted ripped jeans and light pink strappy pumps. We had talked about simple make up and hair, so I decided to do a braided- messy ponytail for hair, and a neutral smokey eye with a baby pink glossy lip for makeup. She called the extra girl over and they got to work.

When it was finished, I couldn't be more happy with the turn out. This was going to look so good with my outfit, and my nails were adorable. Macee had added sort of a Aztec design on my fourth finger that made the look that much better. I thanked them all and joined Reyna at the waiting area while she was finishing drying her toes. Her make up was done in a light eye and a long wing with a bold purple lip, her nails done French style (ironic) with purple tips. Her hair was half up and curled. She looked bomb.

"Wow, Pipes," she said. "You look hot!"

Thanks! You, too, Rey!"

We waited a bit while the other girls finished their pampering session whiled our toes dried. I checked my phone- 6:50; hopefully they were almost ready. I looked up and saw Annabeth skipping towards us. Her hair was curled in soft waves, and her natural blonde faded into a light platinum. Her make-up was a subtle eye with a blue lip, and she had blue acrylics with small diamonds studs on the 1st, 3rd and 5th nails to match.

"Beautiful!" I exclaimed as she twirled in her sweats. She laughed and settled herself into the seat between me and Reyna. Finally, at 6:57, Hazel was finished, to my utmost relief. She finished with her hair down with a few braids scattered around. Her shadows were super natural and she had a glittery gold lip that paired with the nails she had that started as gold glitter and faded into white. We all looked great. But I had the same thoughts as Thalia as she got up to thank Elise and her helpers.

" _Merci, ami,_ but we really have to go. See you ladies soon."

 _"Au revoir! Bonne chance! Et ne pensez pas à mettre vos capots!"_

" _Oui oui! Merci_!" I said back as we started to walk out.

"What did she say, Pipes?" Annabeth asked as Reyna leaned in.

"Good bye, good luck, and don't think about putting on your hoods!"

"Why does that sound like something a French woman would say to me?" Reyna asked.

"Because it is." Annabeth replied before opening the door to the car and sliding in. Reyna shook her head and sighed, but got in after her. I slide in and shut the door behind me, taking my phone out of my white backpack and going on Snapchat. I looked at the girls and raised my eyebrows.

"A little teaser, eh?" Hazel smirked and hopped into the seat next to me, Annabeth and Reyna following her example.

"Here, I can take it." Thalia volunteered, then took the phone from my hands and held it up. "Ugh," she said, and switched apps. "Rule number one: always take first on camera, then put on social media. Okay- spread out. Now, outside girls, put your outside leg up on the seat and your outside arm resting on your leg, then your chin rested on your relaxed hand... there you go. Annabeth, Piper, hands resting on faces, elbows on knees... great! Don't smile, but hold your faces... perfect!" We slowed for a red light, then came to a stop. "Okay, ready? One... two... three!" I was kind of surprised how she instructed the photo; I thought originally that she'd be a little bit of a stickler when it came to simple things like a picture, but she seemed totally fine with it. Once she was done, she gave me the photos to look at, and I chose one to post on my social media pages. I tagged them all with, 'Tune in to The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon at 10:50 for a surprise...', with all the natural hashtags and, obviously, my girls accounts.

Once I sent it out, I put up my phone and stared out to the busy street, going into thoughtless daydreaming mode. My brain faded off into the thought of how famous we would be by the end of tonight, and how Changing Ways would be the stars of something other than our own dreams. What would my parents think? Would they finally notice me? What would they school think? What would... what would Jason think? Would he still be my friend, or would he think of me as a spoiled brat? Would he hate me? Does he hate me now, since all I left him with last night was a-

"Piper! Get out; we have to hurry!" **(haha you thought)** I shook my head with wide eyes and opened the door, scurrying to get to the doors. I pulled open the doors and rushed to the stairs, the other girls right behind me. I ran to Rita and she gave me a huge smile.

"Piper, darling, you're going to look gorgeous! I absolutely love the design, but I thought that maybe we could add a gold or silver chain around the stomach." She showed me what it would look like on the sketch and I quickly agreed. Then she brought out the outfit, and it was even cuter than I imagined. I squealed as she gave me the outfit, shoes, and the light gold chain. I rushed to the changing room and threw on the outfit and slipped on my shoes. I checked the mirror and couldn't be more happy with the turn out. The pink-almost-white crop that was striped with white ended higher up so the gold chain was noticeable, and the long sleeves were still light enough to wear a jacket over and not completely melt. The ripped light wash jeans also looked fantastic and hugged me in the right ways, and the shoes were to-die-for pink, the same color as the pink on my shirt with a four inch heel and a small platform. I walked out and spun for Rita, who bounced while clapping.

"Oh, Piper, you look brilliant!"

"Well, you're the one who made it. Thank you so, so much!" I gave her a hug and turned to see Annabeth walk out in a dark grey mini dress with four blue stripes on it with a blue belt, and blue platform pumps that made her only a tiny bit taller than me.

"Whoa! You look gorgeous!"

"I know." She shrugged. "You look amazing, Pipes!"

"I know." I said with a smirk.

"What, am I just invisible, then?" Hazel asked, feigning hurt as she pranced towards us in gold romper striped with black with a black business jacket covering it. She wielded thigh high black boots that had a gold zipper on the back with a platform so she was level with me, and a cute, black hipster hat balancing on her head.

"Wow! You look bomb!" Annabeth said.

"Aw, you're too kind!" We chatted for a bit until Reyna came out, looking a little self-conscious. She was wearing a white long sleeved shirt with a single skinny purple stripe, the rest skinny and black, and a purple button down skirt pulled up to her waist. On her feet were velvet, purple platform booties so she was a little taller than me, almost as tall as Annabeth. She also had a beautiful necklace on, one of the pieces she got today. It was a long, slim chain that held a purple stone with silver tassels that barely brushed the top of her skirt. But back to the most surprising thing I saw on her. A few years ago I could've sworn that she promised herself that she would never wear a skirt or a dress in her life, but there she was... in a freaking skirt.

"Wha- wha-" I gaped.

"I know, I know," she snapped, "but does it look okay?"

"Are you kidding me?" Annabeth asked.

"Rey, you look hot!" Hazel said, completely flabbergasted. She then smiled and let out a breath of relief. Thalia walked up to us and clapped her hands once.

"You ladies look amazing. Anything we need to touch up before we leave? We still have a few more minutes; we got this done in great time." We looked at each other and shrugged. I looked over to our designers and raised my eyebrows, silently asking. Ruby and Amber put their hands on their chins and gave us a once over. Rita moved over to me and pulled down the sleeve on my shoulder, exposing my shoulder and bra strap. She 'ah-ha'ed and pulled me over to a table after searching through a box of clothes already pieced together. She pulled out a white tank top with slightly thick straps and held it up to my shirt, cutting of the bottom part so it was only a little shorter than the crop.

"There," she said. "Go put it on." I went back to the changing room and slipped it on and walked back out. She nodded her approval and said, "My work is done."

The other designers nodded as well, and I gave Rita one last huge and thank you before we were given coats and and ushered to the car. I buckled my tan trench coat and slipped into the car from the air that was starting to freeze up. We tried to get to the show as fast as we could, but got stuck in New York traffic, and you know how that goes. Once we made it to the studio, we were right on time- 9:00 sharp.

"Thank you, Jamie- you're life saving," Thalia said to the driver, then we all hopped out of the car and jogged into the studio passing some awaiting paparazzi. Once I passed them with a few smiles and waves, I followed Annabeth and Thalia into the Rockefeller Plaza and up to the stage and filming area, where everyone was hustling to set up for the show that started in an hour and a half. I was extremely impressed about how all these people moved and worked together to set up the show. No one bumped into each other with heavy objects or ran into each other trying to deliver news. I hadn't been on set for a T.V show since I was a little girl and my dad took me to work, so I forgot how incredible the process was. Someone rushed up to Thalia and asked her if we we're Changing Ways. She nodded and he motioned us towards the sound check on stage, where none other than Jimmy Fallon himself was talking to someone. We walked up to them and Thalia introduced us. Mr. Fallon smiled and stuck out his hand.

"Hey, girls. Nice to meet you." I shook his hand with a smile and said, "Piper McLean." He looked a little surprised, but kept his smile as he moved to Annabeth, Reyna, and Hazel. With every name he heard, the more surprised he became. "Wait," he paused. "Aren't you... one of Tristan and Aphrodite McLean's daughters?" I nodded, a small frown forming. "And Athena Chase, Bellona Ramirez- Arellano, Pluto Levesque..."

"Yeah," they all said.

"Whoa. Daughters of power houses with power house voices. This is fantastic!" We all smiled and thanked him. Thalia cleared her throat and we looked at her. She tapped the watch on her wrist and looked at Jimmy.

"Fine, fine. You girls have about... 30 minutes to practice. Have fun!"

"Thank you!" Reyna said, then we walked over to sound check for mics. We were each handed a mic and asked to say 'sound check.' I felt so professional, I had to make ridiculous. My sound check came off as something like an alien mixed with a talking cow. Annabeth's sounded like a scratchy-mouse thing. Hazel's sounded like a weird Indian voice, maybe? And Reyna said hers in Spanish with something else added on that made her and Annie crack up. Thalia shook her head, so done with us, but smiling.

"Go warm up!" We grinned and walked up on the stage. I spun around and bowed and gave my best Elvis, "Thank you, thank you very much!"

"Okay, seriously." Annabeth said. "On 'ah'?" I nodded we warmed up with different pitches and tones, on melody and harmony and everything in between. Thalia called fifteen minutes, and we started working on our song. We discussed different moves for different parts and came up with something in time to run through the song once with moves and stage effects. We stepped off the staged and received various complements and praise as the crowd started to file in. Jimmy gave us a thumbs up, and we went backstage for our introduction at 10:48. The cameras were being set up and the camera man asked,"Ready, Jimmy?"

He nodded and everything got silent. The camera man mouthed "Three, two, one" and pointed to Jimmy. The crowd started in applause as Jimmy introduced the show and himself, going through the natural procedures. I looked at the girls and asked, "You ready?" Hazel nodded once and forced a calm smile on her face. Annabeth and Reyna both shook there heads.

"If this doesn't go well, my mother will do everything in her power to make sure I won't sing again." Reyna mumbled.

"We still have to try!" Annabeth insisted. "It's too late to back out now. And we can finally prove our parents wrong about what they think of us." I smiled at them, trying to encourage them. They all smiled back and I whispered, "Let's do this," and put my hand out. They all piled their hands on mine and we whispered, "Changing Ways!" as Jimmy said"... please, welcome, Changing Ways!"

I walked out with the girls behind me and plastered on my best smile as I waved to the crowd and to the camera. I sat down on the couch set out for us on the side closest to Jimmy as the other girls slid in. "Welcome, Changing Ways!"

I turned on my mic and said, "Thanks! Thank you. We're so happy to be here."

"How are you tonight, ladies?"

"We're so good, thank you." Annabeth beamed.

"That, and super nervous." Reyna admitted.

"Really?" He asked. She nodded and he continued, "Why?"

"Because anything could happen. I could trip, I could throw up, or it could go very well and I over exaggerate over nothing. I have no idea what could happen tonight." She explained.

"Ah, but that's the beauty of it, is it not?"

"Very true, very true." She nodded, a smile growing as she looked down.

"Now, we all know you're group name, which is very creative by the way- I love it- we don't all know your names."

"Oh, yeah, sure! My name is Piper McLean..." I pointed to Annabeth, who was sitting next to me.

She smiled and waved. "I'm Annabeth Chase..."

"Hazel Levesque."

"And Reyna Ramirez-Arellano." They both beamed, shaking their hands. The crowd began to whisper, and we knew exactly what about.

"It's exactly what you think." I answered them.

"Well," Jimmy continued, "you're obviously very young with very famous parents and tons of potential. What made you girls want to do what you do?"

"Well," Hazel said, "I've been singing since I was four, when my grandma took me to the laundromat- which yes, still exists-" a chuckle raced through the crowd- "and I just hopped on the laundry machine and started singing. Then a super, super nice lady came by- I remember this so clearly- and gave me ten dollars, and I was like, 'Miss, I'm not working. You can keep your money.' And she said, 'Well, that should help you start! You'd be very famous one day!' And I've been singing ever since."

"Really!" Jimmy said. "That's fantastic! Seems like you were born to sing. Now the question that I, personally, think should be known about all groups: what is the meaning behind your name?"

I thought. "Ooh, I haven't thought about that for a while..." I said.

"Well," Reyna said, "for me- cause we all feel like it's different things- it means that we're changing the ways people think we're supposed to live, or supposed to be, and the way people think that they themselves are supposed to live."

"Yeah," Annabeth said. "I believe that a lot, and the way I think of our name most is we aren't what you'd expect, and we aren't our parents." Her eyes darkened a little bit but she still kept her light tone. "We're not going to live and make their mistakes; we're gonna make our own mistakes and be our own individuals."

"Exactly!" Hazel agreed. "When I think of our name, I think of we're changing the way most people think of... well, let's just say extraordinary parents. Most people think we're gonna be stuck up brats since our lives and needs were practically handed to us from the beginning. We're showing people we are who we are, and we're willing to work for what we want to achieve."

"I think," I said, "that it means that we're changing our lives and other's lives by doing what we love, and we're changing the ways of the world, as we all are. Everyone is constantly changing the world, and we're helping with that by sharing what we have to offer."

"...Wow. That was..." he started to clap slowly and the audience joined in, making us look at each other and laugh.

"Thank you, for sharing that. That- that was beautiful. Now, you obviously know each other very well, and since we don't, I have a game for us to play so we can get to know you better."

"Ooh, fun! I love games." Annabeth said as he pulled out four white boards with different colored dry-erase markers.

"This," he said looking at the camera, "is originally called the Newlywed Game, but tonight we're gonna call it the BFF Game. So we're gonna split you into teams, right down the middle... so we'll do Reyna and Hazel against Annabeth and Piper."

"Oh my gosh, this is perfect! But you might begin a war after this, Jimmy." Reyna looked at the camera with a gleam in her eye. "For those of you who don't know, Changing Ways is _extremely_ competitive. So this will beinteresting."

"Great! I'm gonna be responsible for the War of Changing Ways." I kinda died at that part.

"I promise that it won't be your fault," I said once I caught my breath.

"Oh, good. Okay, so this is how it's going to work. I have some cards here with questions on them for a player one and a player two. So one of you is one, and one is two."

"I'm one," I whispered to Annabeth.

"Fine," she whispered back.

"And I'll ask the question, and one person has to right down the answer, and the person the question was about has to write the correct answer. Ready?"

"Yeah, totally." I answered.

"Okay. We'll start simple. Everyone can answer this for their partners. Nicknames the group calls you?"

I chuckle as I hear Hazel sigh and mumble, "Ooooh boy." We all started writing and I finished right before Annabeth. When we all finished, he told me to turn my boards around and say the nicknames.

"'Kay." I flipped the board and showcased it. "So, we call her Annie a lot- mostly because she hates it- and Wise Girl because it's an inside joke and a long story."

"Wise Girl?" Jimmy asked.

"Yeah. Someone else gave her the name, one of our other really good friends, and it kinda stuck." My heart sinks a little bit talking about Percy and the boys, but I knew I had to be truthful, but not too truthful.

"Okay. Annabeth, for Piper?" She flipped hers over.

"Pipes and Beauty Queen. Pipes because a) shortening of name, and b) can she sing-" there was a few whoops and I felt my face flame a little- "and Beauty Queen because, hello? Have you seen her?" She motioned to me and I stood up and spun around. Giggling as the crowd clapped, I sat back down.

"Okay," Hazel said, turning over her board, "Reyna's names are Rey, Rey-Rey, and occasionally Queen. Queen because her name means 'queen' in Spanish, and she is such a queen!" More clapping and whistling.

"And finally," Reyna sang as Hazel buried her face in her hands as we all began to chuckle. Reyna turned her board over, and written in huge letters was the word 'PEACHES!' We were all laughing at Hazel as she peeked, saw the name, squealed and re-buried her face in her hands. "Eeee! Okay, so this started a few years ago when we were.. how old?"

"I think we were 11." I said.

"Right," she continued. "When Hazel found a gem outside of the school, and a little girl walked up to her and was like, 'Ooh, shiny, shiny!' Then her mom came up, grabbed her daughter by the hand, and gave Hazel one of those apologetic mom looks and said, 'I'm so sorry. Honey, time to go!' Any random person would've kept it and looked away, but not our little Peaches! She gave her the gem and said that she thought it had magic powers, and she really wanted her to have it. The little girl hugged Hazel and the mom said thanks, and all was well. The next week, we were all walking home, and we saw a little German Shepherd that was dirty as a pig sty and looked like it had been abused. Hazel ran to it, picked it up, wrapped it in a towel, and declared that she was going to take it home to clean it up. The pup, who we named Saber, stayed there for two weeks until Hazel decided he would be better in a shelter where he would be taken care of and he could have more attention. We all spent the next three days looking for peaceful non- kill shelters, and when we found one, we took him the next day. Saber had completely fallen in love with with Hazel, so he cried and wouldn't let the people take him, even though they were super nice. So she wound up keeping him and donating her allowance to the shelter to help prevent what happened to Saber happen to any other dog out there. I'm telling you this woman is a saint!"

The crowd cheered and Hazel was laughing and smiling. "Yeah," she said. "I'm pretty nice."

"So," Rey continued, "she is Peaches- or Peach, or Peachy- because she is sweet, warm and fuzzy on the inside."

"That is adorable! Okay, next question for player one. Favorite drink?"

"Omg, this is so easy." Hazel said as I thought about it. I think I know the answer and jot it down.

"M'kay." I said as Annabeth eyed me.

"I hope you know what my favorite drink is..."

"Okay. Annabeth, flip yours over." I had guessed right. 'Root beer' was scribbled on her board and I flipped mine over to match hers. I showed her and smiled.

"Aw, you do know!" She squeezed me and said, "One point for Pipabeth!"

"...What?" Jimmy asked, chuckling.

"Another long story." I said.

"Well, I already know that I got this right."

"That's because it's Reyna and she drinks pretty much nothing else!" I complained.

"Not true!" Reyna said. Hazel flipped over her board to reveal 'hot chocolate.' Reyna nodded and flipped hers over, the answers matching. We played this game for a few more rounds until he ran out of questions and Hazeyna won. Only because Reyna hid nothing from us and they're both boring and classic!

"Well, that's all the time we have with these lovely ladies. When we come back, they'll perform one of their originals and potentially unlock the key to stardom and success. Stay tuned." We smiled at the camera one last time until the lights were dimmed and the camera man gave the okay. I relaxed my face and stood up, stretching my legs and smiling at the girls.

"See? Told you it wouldn't be too bad!"

"Yeah, but now come the time for talent, not personality." Reyna said, her face slackening and going into process mode. I assumed that it was from what she said to her mother, and what her mother promised her if this didn't go well. Annabeth squeezed her hand and comforted her.

"We've practiced this song so many times we've lost count!" She said. "Remember how we don't start writing another song until we memorize and completely get down the harmonies for the song we've been working on? We've got this; _you've_ got this!"

"Trust us, Rey." I said. "We know what we're talking about." Reyna smiled a little and nodded, and we moved off the platform and onto the stage. We warmed up again and ran through some parts of the song until everyone started setting up again. I walked around and shook my hands to try to get the nerves out. Reyna was psyching herself up and talking confidence to herself. Annabeth and Hazel we're singing their harmony parts and going over it with themselves. This is the most nervous I've seen my friends in my whole life- it's the most nervous _I've_ ever been in my life. The camera man called out one minute, and we all huddled together, linking arms.

"I think I'm going to puke again." Hazel said, paling by the second. "I don't know if I can do this."

"Yes, we can, Peach!" Reyna insisted. "We just have to believe. I _know_ that we can." She put her hand in the middle, and I didn't know if it was the pride blossoming in me for Reyna, or if it was me about to pee my pants. I stuck my hand on hers and silently but enthusiastically nodded, Annabeth only a second after. Hazel pulled up a smile and put her hand on top and we broke. I pulled them into a group hug; I knew they were nervous, but at the moment, this was more for my benefit.

"I love you, girls," I told them, "no matter what happens. We're sisters- we'll never fall apart." They all nodded and the camera man started counted down. "10... 9... 8..." We scurried to our places, and I closed my eyes and breathed in, out, in, out to calm myself. Once I open my eyes, I set my face and let my instincts take control. _'Tonight,'_ I thought, _'I'm no one's bitch. I'm going to show them what I can do.'_

I hear the introduction jingle and my adrenaline immediately knocked up 30%. "Welcome back, everyone! If you're just joining us, we had the pleasure of meeting a brand new musical discovery: a girl group called Changing Ways. They were found last night at Karaoke St. Marks during a karaoke battle where they had to sing an original song. After exposing the other group for plagiarizing and basically stealing their song- voices and all- they knocked the socks off of the whole crowd. Tonight, please give them a hand as the sing another original- About the Boy. Ladies and gentlemen please give it up for Changing Ways!"

The entire studio blew up with applause as I skeptically glanced at Thalia, who gave me an encouraging nod from behind the curtain. I took another deep breath and felt the camera being turned to face our backs. I turn my head slightly to see Reyna bring the mic up to her lips, and suddenly, I'm invincible.

* * *

 _ **3rd P.O.V**_

Our girls were way too worried about tripping or saying the wrong thing on stage, so they didn't think about who would be watching the show. The Levesque's excitedly waited through the commercial break to see them perform; Athena angrily flipped to the channel to see how she could win back her daughter's mind while her ex-husband sat on her couch nervously; Piper's father and mother were cozied in their hotel room and flipping through the channels until they landed on Tristan's old friend Jimmy's tonight show; and, of course, Bellona turned the T.V on at 10:48 to see what her daughter had begged her to watch. Frank, who had invited his closest friends over that night to talk about what happened last night, was sitting in the beautiful living room with his step mother when she flipped on the T.V. When Jimmy's voice was heard, the boys scrambled out of their lazy positions and focused intently on the television. The camera turned to the stage, exposing four silhouettes. The one to the very left of the screen threw up an arm that held a mic, head popping up as well, and came back down to its mouth. This started a chain down the line of girls, each one joining in the first verse.

 **Reyna** : Something about, something about the boy

 **ReynaHazel** : Something about, something about the boy

 **Reyna,Hazel,Annabeth** : Something about, something about the boy

 **All** : Just something about the boy

The girls turn around slowly, and the crowd went wild. The boys were flabbergasted at the girls' looks. And they were actually dancing on a stage, confidently and completely unafraid. One of them- Reyna- stepped forward a bit, and Markus was completely captivated. He couldn't believe what he was seeing; Reyna was in a skirt! And she had looked even more beautiful than he remembered from the lonely hours he'd spent without her.

 **Reyna** : _It's the verse in my head, the words that make me stutter_

 _The swag in my step, the change from grey to colour_

 _A guaranteed bet, oh, I found my lucky number_

 _The feeling that you get, can't help but make me wonder_

 **All** : _No need to try, he's just right_

 **Hazel** : _He's got that something, I can't let nobody tell me no_

 **All** : _No, I don't mind, takes me high_

 **Hazel** : _ I won't stop until the boy is mine_

They were completely unprepared for the harmonies that they girls sang, even though they've heard them twice before. Frank, who had more than likely swallowed a few flies, was staring at Hazel with his heart in double time, never failing to remind him of the girl who invaded his thoughts when he drifted off to sleep.

 **All** : _He got me good, I've got it bad_

 _He got me feeling like a girl gone mad_

 _Got me running around like I'm a love-fool_

 _Taking me down, I can't stop_

 _He got me up, I can't come down_

 _He got me locked and I don't want out_

 _I know he's playing my heart and I ain't got no choice_

 _There's just something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _There's just something about the boy_

 **Annabeth** : _It's the first time we met,_

 **AnnabethPiper** : _The lightning to my thunder_

 **Annabeth:** _The green light on red, the kiss that pulls me under_

 _It's only for me, if you're the test I got the answer_

 _And I'm all that you need, now you finally get the chance to_

Percy Jackson was a sensible person, and a guy who wouldn't usually swoon at the pretty girl on the T.V, which made every girl who had a crush on him (which, honestly, was pretty much all of them) try even harder to gain his attention. But tonight completely destroyed that reputation. Once Annabeth started singing, the drool was uncontrollable. First, he could've obviously said that she was the most gorgeous person on Earth when she turned around. When she started dancing, he could've obviously said that she was the hottest person on Earth. But when she started singing- more confidently and proudly than ever before- he could've easily said that she was the most beautiful thing he had ever wanted in his entire life. And last night... she had kissed him.

 **All** : _No need to try, he's just right_

 **Hazel:** _ He's got that something, I can't let nobody tell me no_

 **All** : _No, I don't mind, takes me high_

 **Hazel** : _I won't stop until the boy is mine_

 **All** : _He got me good, I've got it bad_

 _He got me feeling like a girl gone mad_

 _Got me running around like I'm a love-fool_

 _Taking me down, I can't stop_

 _He got me up, I can't come down_

 _He got me locked and I don't want out_

 _I know he's playing my heart and I ain't got no choice_

 _There's just something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _There's just something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _There's just something about the boy_

 **Piper** : _ I know you like to play it slow, but I'm running out of time_

 _It's like I lost my self control cause you are the one_

 _And you know what you've done_

 _My poor heart's come undone, baby please_

At this point, Jason had had about enough. He had listened patiently and in awe to his best friends sing, and he couldn't be more proud of the girls he considered sisters. Then the world slowed as Piper brought the microphone to her lips and provoked him to fall in love with her all over again, as if she were a siren. The moment she looked at the camera, seemingly right at him, he couldn't contain the spinning sensation in his stomach. He managed to slip out of the house with no one noticing. Turning on the live streaming on his phone, he turned on his yellow mustang and floored it. He made it to the Rockefeller Plaza in 10 minutes.

 **All** : _ He got me good, I've got it bad_

 _He got me feeling like a girl gone mad_

 _Got me running around like I'm a love-fool_

 _Taking me down, I can't stop_

 _He got me up, I can't come down_

 _He got me locked and I don't want out_

 _I know he's playing my heart and I ain't got no choice_

 _There's just something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _There's just something about the boy_

 **All (Hazel on runs)** : _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _Something about, something about the boy_

 _There's just something about the boy_

* * *

 _ **Piper's P.O.V**_

As we posed for the last time and the crowd cheered, I knew I couldn't smile any wider as I let my performing face go. We got out of our stances and waved to the camera as it slowly made it's way back over to Jimmy, who gave us the 'great performance' and 'good luck in the future' good-bye kinda thing before focusing on his next guest. We were motioned off the stage and we made our way behind the back curtains. Thalia greeted us with a huge smile and said,'You did awesome, girls! Now, let's get you into some comfortable clothes."

"Sounds great." Hazel nodded. "I'm starting to get really itchy." We laughed and grabbed the sweats and long sleeved T-s Thalia offered and slipped into the backstage dressing rooms. I shrugged on a big, grey jacket on top to make sure I didn't freeze my ass off. I slipped some fuzzy white slides on my sore feet and took out my hair, shaking around my head. I stepped out of the dressing room to meet up with the other girls and threw my arm around Hazel's shoulders as we started back to the limo that was a little more guarded from paparazzi this time.

As we turned a corner, bathrooms appeared and, naturally, everyone had to go. "I'll wait out here." Thalia said, yawning. We nodded as we trudged into the bathroom. I was about to close the door behind me as I entered, but a strong, sturdy hand yanked me away and into the janitor's closet, the other hand coming up to clamp my mouth shut.

The door slammed behind me, and I braced myself to to beat some serious shit out of this guy. I bit down as hard as I could on the hand that covered my mouth and kneed his groin. A muffled yelp came from my captor as he sank to the ground. He turned on the light as I knelt down and winded my had back to punch him. My fist didn't fly, though, as I looked into the most beautiful but pained blue eyes I had seen.

"Jason!" I whisper-yelled, nervousited for a moment as I slid down against the wall to sit on my ankles. **(if u don't know what nervousited is, it's nervous-excited)** Then I remembered he had pulled my into a broom closet at the perfect timing, which meant he was waiting on me/ spying on me. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I had to see you." He replied, holding his hand. My thoughts immediately imploded. He had to see me again? What did that mean? I looked down at his hand and saw that it was bleeding.

"Holy shit! Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, Jason. Are you okay?" He looked up into my concerned eyes. He stared a little longer.

"I am now." My heart when into double time. Now I really had to pee my pants. _I am now?_ What in the hell?

"W-what?" I stuttered. He only kept staring.

"I can't believe you." He said. _Okay, so now he's mad at me?_ I couldn't be any more confused. He tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear and I sharply sucked in a breath. "Why didn't you say anything other than 'I'm leaving and we won't see each other again' last night?" **(nowww you knowww)**

I flashed back to last night and shook my head, his hand remaining gently on my face. "I'm sorry. I didn't know what was going to happen since we got that record deal; I thought that I was going to be right, and it killed me. I mean- not being able to see my best friends anymore!" _Shit,_ I thought. _Nice save, Piper._ He forced me to look at him; he looked conflicted. Finally, after what seemed to be an hour, he spoke.

"Is that really all you see me as? A friend?" I felt my eyes widen as I tried to keep my cool, but internally I was screaming _ALERT! ALERT! JASON KNOWS! HE FOUND OUT! LIFE = NO MORE! REPEAT-JASON KNOWS!_

"W-why?" I wind up asking.

"I know my friends very, very well, and I know that they all have crushes on your girls-"I gasped, I _was_ right- "and they all separated with their crushes when you told us what happened. And... and you're the one who told me. Ironically. We were all told by the people we fell in love with." It took me a moment to process what he said, but when I figured it out, it was all I could do to keep from squealing and running around and fainting.

"..." I was absolutely speechless, and gaping like a bass. "What- how... why?"I finally managed. "Why do you like me? I mean... it's me. The girl who's a nobody, who's famous parents doesn't care about her, who doesn't usually give a damn about how she looks and gets bullied because she's not good enough and I'm not good enough to be your crush and-" I hadn't really realized I was crying until my voice broke and Jason pulled me into his strong, comforting arms, shh-ing me and stroking my hair.

"Why?" He quietly chuckled. "I fell in love with a beautiful, strong woman who stands up for her friends and herself no matter what happens. I fell in love with a girl who knows who she is, and doesn't let anyone tell her otherwise- not her bullies, not her parents, not her 'fate'- and is loving, compassionate, beautiful minded. I like the girl who may not be perfect- hell, no one is- but couldn't be any more spectacular." I was so completely shocked I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I looked up at him teary- eyed, and he brushed a dewy bead away from my eye, and again pushed a strand of sweaty hair behind my ear, this time to cup my face.

I had no time to process what was about to happen as he bent down to brush his lips against mine. He pulled back just enough to look into my shocked eyes, then kissed me again. I blinked for a second, then completely melted under his touch, wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him close. What started as gentle soon became desperate, needy, hungry. His lips became feverish, pressing against mine with an unknown desire. I pulled him closer than I felt was possible, returning his demands with the same amount of passion. In an even sweatier mess, I was up against the wall, tugging on his shirt and running my hands on his hard muscles. He started tracing kisses along my jawline as I caught my breath, but I knew what I had to do, and I needed more. I pulled his face back to mine as my eyes shed a few more tears. Sensing this, he kissed each one that fell, asking me what was wrong and, not being able to respond, just sat there. He moved back to my mouth, much more gentle, still asking what was wrong. I pushed him away and looked up at him.

"Wow..." He laughed and leaned in again. I put a finger to his lips and shook my head. "This never should've happened."

"What?"

"This never should've happened," I repeated. "I knew this was a terrible idea." More tears fell as Jason sat confused, his hands still on my waist and neck. "Fuck," I said, then got up to leave.

"Wait, wait!" He got up after me and grabbed my arm. "What do you mean?"

"I mean... that this never should've happened. I have to go and find the girls... and Thalia... and leave. We have so much work to do."

"Wait, why? Do you have to go right now? When can I see you again?"

"...never. Probably never. Or whenever we get back to school. I don't know." I put my hand on the door handle and fixed my shirt and jacket, flipping up my hood to hide my tangled hair. Jason put his hand on top of mine.

"Pipes." I looked up at him. "Why don't you want to see me?"

"Please, Jason. That's entirely besides the point-"

"Piper." He said more firmly. "Why? Do you hate me now?"

"God, no! Dear lord, no, Jason. Do you know how hard this is going to be for me?"

"Then why do you have to-"

"Because there are people counting on me, Jason! And this is my dream! I have to chase it. You'd do the same thing."

"Unless my dream is you."

"Shut up! Shut up, you stupid boy!" I exclaimed, now almost pissed.

"Why the hell are you mad at me?" He asked getting angry, but remembering his volume.

"Because you're not making this easy!"

"Well, this is never easy, Piper! How do you expect this to be easy? How is it _my_ fault that this isn't easy?"

"Because now I'm in love with you even more than before!" Escaped from my mouth. His gaze softened as I swallowed the giant knot of emotion that swelled in my throat. "Because. Your pretty words, your will to love me... I can't explain it. I had always loved you for the way you are, and now that I know you feel the same way? Now that you've told me that you want me? Now that you've _kissed me?_ I can't believe how insanely unfortunate I am, having to tell the person I love to back off. I _do_ love you, but I can't love you right now. Nothing is fair in love and war, and this is the war we're going to have to fight if we want to be together. I'm so sorry. I'll tell you when the time is right, then... we can talk about it! But now? ... I'm so sorry. I can't believe I did this!" I ran out of the closet with Jason calling after me. I turn the corner, but can't find Thalia and the girls. I couldn't bare to see Jason at all, so I gave myself a good amount of space between the janitor's closet. I looked around for a minute, calling for Thalia and the girls when I realized what I didn't want to imagine.

I was all alone, holding myself, in the middle of the Rockefeller Plaza.

* * *

 **Okay, so I guess this is the end. Longest chapter so far! Woo-hoo! I may have barfed a little writing the Jasper scene, but it was necessary. Next time, things should get a** _little_ **more interesting... and by the way, if you have any suggestions about how** _you_ **think the story should be or what should be added, send me a little review and tell me what 'cha think. What am I doing wrong, what am I doing right? It'll be great! Thank you, thank you very much!**

 _ **~TheKeeperGeek**_


	8. Eight- And so the Work Begins

**Heelloo. Hope y'all had a very Merry Christmas, and whatever other holiday you may have celebrated. And 2018... how are you here so early? I hope you had a wonderful time- and still are!- on your break. Yeah, that's it. Oh, btw, if you didn't notice all the puns I was able to make with _About the Boy,_ you're not a true PJO/HoO fan...**

* * *

 _ **SHOUT OOOOUUUUUUTS!:**_

Thank you thank you to **Hazel Feathers Raining Down, Zeedaboss** and **Fantasysword92375** for following _Possibly Noticed,_ and again to **Fantasysword92375** and **Zeedaboss** for adding it to your favorites! And _again_ \- again to **Zeedaboss** for following and adding me (as an author) to your favorites. **Zeedaboss** , you're flipping amazing. I'm so incredibly happy you all like it! (If you want a shout out, just do something awesome!)

* * *

 **DISCLAIMER:** (something creative to show that I don't own the characters [except Markus] or the songs, but I do own the plot)

* * *

 _ **Hazel's P.O.V**_

I found her sitting in a heap on the floor near the main entrance, her body racking in sobs. "I found her!" I yelled into my phone. "We're by the main entrance." She heard me and looked up, her makeup a little smudged and her eyes puffy.

"Where the hell were you, Piper?" I asked, kind of pissed that we couldn't find her for thirty minutes. "We were looking literally _everywhere_ for you! Security is on every corner for the next three blocks and you were here the whole... time... Piper?" Her eyes welled up again with pained tears and she reburied her head into her arms, and I had the answer I needed. I sighed, angry for another reason and at another person. I hugged her and rubbed her back, trying to comfort her but knowing nothing would work for a while. She hugged me back for a few seconds, then pushed me away as if I was lava, looking at me with wild eyes, like a cornered animal.

"What?" I asked, seriously concerned. "Did I do something? Did the girls do something? Did I completely read the look that you gave me wrong?" She shook her head and wiped her eyes. So it was the bastard. "What did he do?"

Sh sniffed, wiping her nose on her sleeve and trying to calm herself down. "You have to swear not to tell anyone. Not even the other girls." I nodded, super confused. Her voice was cracking so bad I thought her heart was cracking with it. She gulped hard and whispered something so soft I could barely tell her lips are moving.

"What, Piper? It's- it's fine; just say it. Get it over with." At this point I didn't know what to do. She seemed seriously traumatized. She took another deep breath.

"He was here."

Ho. Ly. Shit. _He was here?!_ Was Frank here, too? Did he hear me sing? Was he coming to profess his love that I romanticize about every night when I can't sleep? Or even when I can? Wait. This isn't about me. _Shut up, Hazel._

"Holy. Shit..." I waited. "... oh my God you weren't kidding." I had to take a moment to breath myself. I pursued my lips and shook my head. I blinked, surprise.

"Where?"

She looked even further away from me. "The janitor's closet by the restrooms."

"... in the hell— you were in a closet with Jason Grace?" I whisper-yelled.

"... yes?"

"GIRL! You lucky little-"

"I hate him."

"... what?" I'm so shocked at her new revelation that I was lost for words.

"I hate him so much. With a burning passion."

Piper McLean, announcing that she hated Jason Grace? What demon had possessed her and distorted her precious soul?

"Who _are_ you?"

"What?"

"Who the hell are you? You're not Piper, beautiful protector and gorgeous bombshell with a pure teenage mind and a huge crush on a beautiful person who happens to be somewhat like a brother to the rest of your best friends who admire and adore you and your CRUSH because-"

"He kissed me, Hazel." She looked up at me with a calm that lasted only a second longer. She broke down into tears again as she told me what happened. She was just finishing as we heard the girls' voices turning the corner.

"Piper!" Annabeth exclaimed, and she and Reyna started towards us. When the reached us, they fell to the ground beside us.

"What's wrong, Pipes? And where were you?" Piper looked at me, pleading with her eyes. It's hard for me to lie, especially to the people most important to me. But, for Piper, I did it.

"Guys, she doesn't wanna talk about it." They got the gist and rubbed her back, coaxing her to get up to walk to the limo. As usual, the paparazzi decided to be smart and find our limo, which made Reyna, Annabeth, Thalia and I all pissed, and Piper even more upset. We all flipped up our hoods and pushed our way to the car door Jamie held open as Thalia called for security help. They forced back the crowd, but not before they got a few good shots of our emotional states. No doubt they'd love that in the press.

 _Jeez,_ I thought. _One full day into stardom and I kinda already hate it._

We miraculously made it back to the car and Reyna slammed the door shut. I took off my jacket, suddenly too hot and too uncomfortable. I looked over to Piper to see how she was holding up, and saw her examining Thalia.

"Hey, Thalia..."

"Yeah?"

"... do you have a younger sibling?" I sucked in a breath and Rey and Annie glanced at me.

"Uh, why?"

"Because I think my mother's pregnant again. I heard them talking in the kitchen, and I'm the youngest, so I have no idea what to expect." I was surprised how easily the lie spouted from her.

"Okay. Yes, they can be hard work, but you'll love them- no matter how many diapers you have to change. I'm especially close to my brother since I practically raised him, but because of my job, I'm not able to see him as much as I want. Your parents are in the same situation mine were, and your siblings are busy, so you might have the same relationship with your sister or brother as I do with Jason." The other girls gasped with me this time and Piper's eyes got impossibly big. Thalia looked around with a hint of her smile still remaining. "What?" She asked.

"Y- you're the mama- sister." Piper stuttered. Then, the poor, unfortunate girl- from all the emotional stress she was under- passed out across the limo couch.

"Oh my God, what happened-" Thalia stopped, then paled a bit. I had jumped over to Piper to check her temperature and make sure she was breathing, so Reyna asked, "What? What did you think about?"

Thalia glanced over to the unconscious Piper and gave a short chuckle. "So this is who he was talking about last time." She mumbled.

"What?" Annabeth asked. "He? _Jason?_ What did he say?"

"That he found a girl actually beautiful for the first time in his life. Not 'hot' or 'sexy'- beautiful. And she was one of his best friends, and the only one who had a clue who I was. He never wanted to say anything because he didn't want pity or a sob story, but he said he completely trusted her. He described her in perfect detail: kinda choppy chestnut hair, kaleidoscope eyes, brightest smile... he's- well, at least was- completely smitten with her. And now, I'm working with her. Whoa, this got ten times more awkward!"

"Wait... _last_ time? How long has it been since you've seen each other?"

She looked down. "Three years."

"Three _years?_ "

I looked back to Piper's finally peaceful face. _Damn,_ I thought. _He's liked her for at least four years!_ _And he chased her to tell her. Maybe at the most inappropriate time, but he still found her and told her he loved her. I don't know anyone who has that much confidence. Maybe it wasn't confidence, though. Maybe he just needed to get it off his chest, like he had a bug, or a little devil on his shoulder whispering in his ear and telling him to do so. Or maybe-_

"Hey, Hazel. Can you try waking up Piper? We're about five minutes away."

"Yeah, sure." I looked back over at her, my thoughts interrupted, and realized I'd been silent and wondering for almost thirty minutes. I shook her arm a little bit. "Piper. Pipes. Get up, girl." She groaned and looked over to me. She smiled sadly and sat up rubbing her head.

"I'm sorry, guys." She said.

"Why? It's totally understandable to be stressed out during something as big as Jimmy's show. Don't worry about it." Thalia smiled at her and gave her a look. Piper nodded and smiled back. I didn't want to ask what that was about. Piper seemed so fragile right now, I didn't want to say anything that would break her even more.

We pulled up to the building, where several amazing people waited for us. "Amber!" I ran out of the car and flew into one of my newest favorite people. She laughed and hugged me back.

"Hey, darlin'!" She said in her thick country drawl. "We just finished hangin' up all of y'all's clothes in y'all's closets. Aaaand, a few other of our designs based on what we made for y'all tonight." I squealed and thanked her, hugging her again and bidding her good bye. "See you soon!" She winked at me and waved. We walked inside with Thalia and went up to our penthouse. The elevator door opened and we headed in.

"It's kind of obvious you girls haven't seen your rooms yet, so I'd suggest heading up and taking a look." I was immediately excited. Apollo had called us earlier today and asked what we wanted our rooms to look like, so I gave him a general idea of what my room at my house looked like, but added a few things. I glanced at my band mates and smiled huge, starting towards the enormous, floating glass staircase in the center of the large living room. I took off my shoes, not wanting to ruin the perfect shine on the steps. I tip-toed up in my socks and waited for Thalia on the top.

"One more." She pointed up and I smiled wider as I tip- toed up the second staircase. I looked back at her when I reached the top, she nodded and pointed to the left, and I turned to find my room. Sure- and fancy- enough, our names were written on golden plaques nailed on the door.

"Whoa," I breathed, then looked down to find a key with a cute gold lanyard on it in the keyhole. I turned it slowly until I heard a faint _click._ I turned the handle, pushed the door open, and gasped.

A huge, pale gold room sat in front of me with a large gold chandelier dangling from the ceiling. In the middle, my bed was huge with a white comforter and a white, ornate headboard, while gold, purple, and blue pillows of all shades and sizes decorated a fourth of it. A large white desk sat to the right, and to the right, the door to my bathroom was left open. A huge, plush white swing was to the left in a corner, surrounded by light blue bookcases and potted plants on top of them. The wall to my left was covered by a white and gold chevron curtain. I pushed it aside to reveal sliding doors that opened up to a grand balcony decorated with beautiful verdancy. I skipped into my bathroom and found it was decorated very similar. Full vanity, giant mirror, and jacuzzi tub. I didn't know how it could get better... until I remembered my closet. I sauntered over to the double doors and flung them open to reveal something almost completely similar to Princess Mia's in _The_ _Princess Diaries._ And that's when I screamed.

I twirled around and landed on my bed, giddily shrieking about my new room. I realized that if I screamed, the girls would've came rushing in. I turned to a wall and knocked on it. My room was sound proofed. I screamed and flung myself back on my bed. Annabeth ran into my room and gasped.

"This is so beautiful, and so you! Come see mine!" I ran over to her room, which was the door closest to the stair case, right next to mine. Hers was similar in many ways to mine- the structure, the bed, the bathroom- but the color scheme was different. Apparently, that was the layout for all of our rooms, I found out, when the other girls showed off theirs.

We were all so tired, we were drifting off to sleep as we were talking. We decided to try out our new beds at around 12:30. I waddled into my closet to grab a pair of pajamas and slipped them on. I pushed of the decorative pillows and kept the five that were the comfiest and largest, and slipped under the soft, plush blanket. I practically sank into the bed, it was so soft. I had no trouble falling asleep, and I was until I heard my door open.

"Hazel?" I sat up groggily and rubbed my eyes.

"Yeah, Pipes?" She shut the door and walked over to my bed, arms folded over her Pink pajamas.

"I can't sleep. I don't want to be by my self." I nodded and set up a spot for her to sleep on the left side of me. She crawled over me and nestled in. She sighed and took my hand.

"Thanks, Peach." She said. I nodded again and we fell asleep with our hands folded together, keeping each other safe and at ease.

* * *

I woke up from the most comfortable sleep I've had since high school started refreshed. I turned over to Piper, who was still sleeping. Poor girl. I shook her gently awake. She blinked her eyes open and sat up, her hair and makeup hardly smudged since she went to bed. I held back a sigh of exasperation; seriously? Why isn't her makeup smudged? I looked down to my pillow and threw it off the bed.

"Morning, Peach."

"Morning, Pipes. You okay?"

"A little better." She nodded. She slide out of the bed and stretched. "I can't believe that we're here."

"Me either," I agreed, "and it smells, like, really good." She laughed and nodded. "You aren't going to be sad today." I decided. She looked at me, a little confused. "I kinda wanna get dressed in _my brand new closet!_ You wanna help me pick something out?"

"Of course!" We walked over and sang the 'Hallelujah Chorus' as I opened the doors, then squealed again. We searched through the racks and picked out three super cute long sleeved shirts, four different pairs of jeans, three pairs of leggings, two dresses, four pairs of boots, four pairs of heels, and five different scarves. We only touched about a fifth of the closet.

We quietly ran over to Piper's room and dived into her closet, getting the same amount of everything. We hurried back to my room and shut the door.

"Okay. Fashion show starts... now!" I ran back into my closet, searched through my drawers, grabbed what I needed, and ran into my bathroom with my first outfit. Once I had it on I walked out and posed. Piper laughed so hard throughout the corse of this process she had to change her underwear. We finally settled on a white, fitted long sleeved one piece, a minty blue scarf, ripped blue mom jeans, and white heels for me. Piper wore a light, oversized kitted grey sweater over black leggings, and grey suede pumps to match.

I plunged back into the depths of my mini shopping mall and found a selection of sunglasses. I picked out a round pair of shades for Piper, and some tan aviators for me. We charged in my bathroom to put on makeup, opening every drawer and cabinet to reveal the highest end cosmetics... all in my shade. Piper sprinted to her room and ran back with an armful of makeup products. We finished getting ready in about an hour. I had a neutral smokey eye with a small black wing and a soft pink lip Piper helped me with, and my hair was in a high pony. Piper had on no eyeshadow but mascara, and a bold red lip. She straightened her hair so it barely fell past her waist in layers. She also introduced me to the power of a brow pencil, and I loved it.

I checked my watch. 9:30. I had thought it would've been at least 12:00, considering I actually slept well and Apollo told us he was coming to get us. Thalia has mentioned that he or Leo would be coming by to pick us up today start working in the studio. I looked at Piper and said, "I call dibs on waking up Reyna!"

She groaned. "But Annabeth hits people!"

"Tell her we're going to the studio at any time and you and I are going to pick up Starbucks."

"... fine." We picked up our mess (Piper's stupid OCD) and headed out to the other girls' rooms. Reyna's room was across the hall from Annabeth's, on the other side of the staircase. I opened the door quietly and poked my head in. Her light purple walls were so gorgeous against the dark purple of her balcony curtain and the tiny diamond decals that dotted around it. Subtle lights were turned on by her bookshelves, so I could at least see where I was going. I walked over to her bed, where I found her tangled up in her sheets. I swallowed a laugh and the urge to take a picture, and walked over to her.

"Reyna," I said, shaking her. "Reyna, wake up!" She groaned and lazily slapped my hand away. "We're going to the studio today. Apollo and Leo are going to pick us up in, like, two hours! Get up!" She rolled out of my reach. I rolled my eyes and took off my heels.

"GET UP!" I jumped in her bed and started bouncing on it while trilling "Get up get up getupgetupgetuuuuuuup!"

She groaned and said, "But I'm tired, Hazel! Leave me alone." I stopped bouncing, annoyed.

"Piper and I are going to Starbucks." She groaned, rubbed her eyes, and forced herself to sit up. "Unbelievable." I shook my head and jumped down, slipping my surprisingly comfortable shoes back on. "What do you want? The usual?"

"Yep."

"'Kay. Now get dressed. You're not getting your Starbucks until you're dressed." I pushed open her curtain to reveal a bright day shining through.

"You sound like Piper." She grumbled as she fell out of bed.

"Yeah, she's waking up Annabeth."

"Ooh. If anyone can do it, it's Piper. We've tried, we've failed. Let's hope Piper doesn't get smacked the hell out of." She opened her closet and sighed. "I'm so happy right now."

I walked over to look in her closet. "Me too. I suggest cute and comfy, but still stylish."

"Cool. I was looking through here last night, and Becca already laid out some cute outfits. What do you think about this one?" She held up a red long sleeved shirt with a black scarf with dark denim jeans with holes in the knees. I nodded and looked through her shoes. I pulled out a pair of black booties around the same height my shoes were- 2 inches. She nodded and I went in her bathroom to pick out a few different things I thought she should do for her make up.

"Okay, I'm gonna go down with Pipes. See you in a little bit."

"See ya, Peach." I headed out the same time Piper was.

"You survived?" I asked as I met her at the stairs. We started walking to the elevator.

"Barely." She showed me the red mark on her hand.

"Ooh. Sorry, Pipes. You help her get ready?"

"A little. She's getting better at it. Reyna?"

"Yep. Woke up when I mentioned Starbucks. Unbelievable. Won't get up to work, but will get up for Starbucks. Doesn't sound like Reyna at all!"

"Nope, sounds like you." I was about to protest until I realized she was right. I decided to maturely stick my tongue out at her behind her back. We were walking out of the elevator when the receptionist asked where we were going.

"Uh, just to Starbucks." Piper told him with a sweet smile. He stuttered an 'okay' and told us that he had a limo line for us.

"Thank you so much, but it's fine. We can take a cab." I smiled at him and he shakily smiled back. I held back my laugh as we flipped on our sunglasses and walked out onto the already busy street. Piper saw a taxi dropping someone off and we ran over to it.

"Excuse me," Piper asked the driver. "Could you take us to the nearest Starbucks?"

"Sure. Hop in!" We slide in the back. "What do you wanna- oh, whoa! You're two of the girls from the club and The Tonight Show!" He said enthusiastically in the rear view mirror.

I grinned, slightly shocked he knew. "Yes sir."

"Wow. Uh, yeah. Wow. What- uh- what music do you girls wanna listen to?"

"Ahhhh..." Piper shrugged. "Whatever's on is fine with me." He flipped on the radio and chatted with us about how we were doing and how the new life was treating us. By the time we reached Starbucks, which took 30 minutes thanks to New York City traffic, we had made a new friend and a new fan.

"Um, before you ladies go, do you think you could, uh, maybe take a picture with me?"

Piper smiled and nodded while I said "Definitely!" I got out and hopped in the passengers seat and took his phone. I took the picture with me and Piper and gave it back.

"Thanks, ladies! No charge."

"Really? Are you sure?" Piper asked.

"For sure. It's my honor."

I thought for a second. I _had_ brought fifty bucks... "Well, I refuse not to pay you. You're way too nice." I gave him twenty and insisted he kept it.

"Thanks, Miss Hazel. You're too sweet."

"No problem, George. Have a great day!" We got out and got everyone's coffee. The same process happened with the next cab driver, only she charged us and asked us super personal questions that made Piper a little sad. We didn't tip her.

When we got up to our room, we looked for a place to set our stuff down. I pushed open a random door and entered a beautiful kitchen and dining room area and motioned Piper over. The white marble table sat about fifteen, and had a beautiful vase of colorful flowers in the middle. I set down the two drinks I was holding and called to the girls upstairs. I walked back into the dining area and sat down in the surprisingly plush white chair as Piper opened the windows, her coat thrown over a chair.

The other girls came in looking fabulous. Reyna was in the outfit she showed me earlier with the makeup suggestions I lied out: a dark smokey eye and a shiny pink lip gloss. Her eyes looked a little darker than usual, and they were a little puffy. I decided not to ask. Annabeth was wearing white shredded jeans and a tan off the shoulder sweater with matching wedged booties. She had a subtle eye look with a dark liner and a glossy nude lip. Her hair had beach waves and was flipped to her right side.

"You look great!" Piper smiled.

"Thanks, Pipes," Reyna said, picking up her hot chocolate, "but can you help me with my hair? I managed to curl it a little, but I can't get it up right." In two minutes, her hair was half up in a top not. "Thank you!" She blew her a kiss.

"And thanks for the coffee." Annabeth added. "You guys are the best."

"We know." Piper and I said at the same time. A buzz sounded through the penthouse. "Ch- Changing ways, you have a visitor. Can I send him up?" I walked over to the buzzer in the kitchen and held down the button.

"Yep! Thanks, Charlie." I let go and snickered. Annabeth crossed her arms and shook her head, smiling.

I walked back and started dragging a chair my the windows that Piper opened. The lighting was perfect.

"What 'cha doin', Peach?" Reyna asked.

"Taking an Instagram pic. Help?" She smiled and pulled back the curtains even more as I fixed the chair. The drapes on the arm rests and around the feet made it look even better for a pic. I sat down with my Starbucks and crossed my legs to the side and held my coffee cup in my hand that rested on the arm of the chair. Reyna took a few different pictures then claimed it was her turn. Annabeth and Piper joined in and we were finishing with Piper's picture when someone wolf whistled and said, "Whoo! Damn, girl- you look fine."

Piper laughed as we turned to see Leo Valdez standing in the doorway. I giggled as I saw him in his jeans and white button up, twirling towards us. He winked at us and said, "Hey, ladies."

Piper fake swooned and I gave a fan girl squeal. Annabeth yelled, "Marry me, Leo!"

Reyna walked over to him and said, "Save it, Annabeth. He like Spanish girls." She threw an arm on his shoulder and said, " _Hola, Papi."_

He twirled her and dipped her. " _Hola, Mami."_ She looked to us, a delighted look of shock on her face. I whooped and Piper and Annabeth shrilly laughed. She turned back to him and asked him something in Spanish. He nodded pulled her back up. Reyna gave him the phone to take a picture of us all.

"Warning: I'm not as good at this as Thalia is, but I'll try it." He held up the phone and Piper rolled her eyes.

"Wait for us to figure out what we're doing so you're not standing there with your arms up for five minutes."

He crossed his arms and said, "Well, hurry up! Apollo's meeting us at the studio in fifteen." I thought for a second. I told the girls my idea and we took a few pics. We decided on the picture with Piper and Annabeth sitting on the arms of the chair, legs crossed; Reyna in the chair like a queen; and me sitting cross legged in front of her.

"Great! Now, let's hurry. Grab whatever you need and let's go!" I started up towards my room to grab a small, white cross body bag. I threw in some cash, lipgloss, and my phone.

I called out, "Who has the book?"

"I do!" Came from Reyna's room. We headed over to the studio, which was exactly what I thought it would be. **(a/n use ur imagination. i'm tired of thinking of things. sorry- i tired)** We went straight to the back, where we saw Apollo waiting for us in a black track suit. He got up from the plush blue chair he was sitting in.

"Hey ladies! How are you?" I tried not to fangirl. So, so hard not to fangirl!

"Good. How're you, Mr. Solace?"

"Fantastic and please, it's Apollo." Almost fangirled, but I managed to hold myself back. "Shall we get to work?"

We headed towards the recording room and Apollo explained that we were going to go over the basics of a sound booth.

"Mr. Sola- Apollo? We kind of... already know." Annabeth said, wringing her hands. "We made a few flash drives with our songs on them. We have them here if you want them." He looked at Leo, who shrugged, then nodded at us. Reyna pulled out the drives and handed them over. Leo whistled.

"You girls sure know what your doing. These'll be an easy upload to the system to put in their album." Apollo smiled at us.

"Well done, ladies. We'll get your songs up in no time. What songs are these?"

"Oh. Blue one is About the Boy, and silver is Little me." Reyna pointed.

"Great." Leo said, then took off in another direction.

"Well, would you like to sing one of your songs and harmony parts to warm up? We're going to try to record at least one song a day so we can get you back to school and moving forward in your career ASAP. Good?"

"Great!" Piper said back. He pointed a finger gun at her and winked.

"Perfect. Go ahead and go in." We set down our stuff and headed in the booth. We did a small warm up, then sang Little Me acapella, and then it began.

Our first time singing in front of Apollo was really nerve wrecking, but when he smiled and commended us, my ego went from 4 to 20. We managed to record a perfect 'Cannonball'.

We recorded 'Who Says', 'A Different Beat', and the first song we ever wrote called 'Gold' in the next week. Time flew as we wrote and recorded new songs. Before we knew it, it was a few days before what was supposed to be our Christmas break at school, which meant midterms. Leo got all the exams from the secretary at school with a bit of charming and bribing. We completed them over the course of three days and had the results in five. We all got perfect scores on the tests we needed to take... except my math. I missed one question that I _wasn't even there for the lessons!_ A 99 is still pretty good for math, though.

Reyna later told us she got a call from her mother when Piper and I went to Starbucks. There was a lot of screaming and crying and painful, painful words. She was kicked out 'until she could find herself again and get her shit together.'

Piper got a call from her parents, asking why they hadn't told her that she had such a beautiful voice and that she was on the Jimmy Fallon show. Piper had managed to tell them that it was all so fast and she was overwhelmed without blowing up to them. They weren't going to be home for the holidays anyways.

Everyone came over to my house for Christmas. No one wanted to go home after what happened with their parents. My parents were more than happy to host.

New years was a blast! Never underestimate the power of Apollo Solace and his ability to pull off the most spectacular parties! Ever.

For the most part, we finished writing, recording, refining and picking out the songs for our first album by January 7th, the day before school was supposed to start back up. The release would be the next weekend if the cover was approved.

"Hey, ladies." Apollo said to us that day. "You guys have been doing amazing the last month, and we couldn't be any happier with your album."

Thalia, who we got to know much better to be a Green Day loving, excitement- seeking, very motherly girl, said, "You got that right!"

"So," Apollo continued, "we're going to give you a choice. You can stay cooped up here and live luxuriously and bored, like the popstars you are. Or, you could live luxuriously and try to be normal teenagers for eight hours Monday through Friday."

It took me a second to figure out what he was saying, then gasped. "You're suggesting we go back to _school?_ Did you even hear what we told you happened to us?"

"Yes, Hazel, I heard it all. But, this would be your last year of school- you're all already smart enough to live the way you're going to- so you only have a semester left of the whole thing. Then you're done! But, while you still can, you should be a teenager. Other than the photo shoots and concerts you'll be doing." That made me think. Would I regret it when it was all said and done? When I couldn't go back to be a kid? I mean, we might as well have some fun, and school shouldn't be a problem for us. Now that they know what happened, the 'pop' girls wouldn't dare try shit with us, and we could be possibly noticed by everyone at school. I started to smile thinking of the possibilities.

I looked at the other girls. Were they thinking the same thing? They looked over at me too. I looked from Reyna, to Annabeth... then to Piper. She looked nervous, and I knew what about. We silently conversed with only looks, and finally agreed on something.

"We'll do it." Annabeth announced.

"On one condition." I threw in. Apollo looked confused but nodded.

Reyna smiled. "We get to wear whatever we want and have parties in the penthouse."

"And if we can't take it, we're out." Piper added.

Apollo looked to his comrades. Thalia shrugged and grinned while Leo crossed his arms and smirked. He turned back to us and stuck out his hand.

"Deal." He said, and in turn shook our hands.

* * *

 **The end! For now! Sorry I kinda lied. It didn't really get more interesting. Oops. But interest should come next chapter. _Should._ Drop a review if you have a suggestion! That's all I have! Good night! Or day, depending on where you live!**

 _ **~TheKeeperGeek**_


	9. Nine- Are you Serious?

**Hi! The only reason I was able to update this early is because I had a 15 hour drive on the 2nd, and this was a shorter chapter anyways. I know- I'm great. Now you can read.**

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 ** _SHOUT OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUTTTSS!:_**

Thank you thank you to **A Very Confused Unicorn** for favoriting my story! Lots of love!

This isn't for one of the amazing people following/ favoriting my story, but if you haven't read **A Crown of Golden Leaves,** you absolutely have to. It's so good and so beautifully written that I probably shouldn't have suggested it because then you'll stop reading my story. Tee- hee... It's mainly Percabeth themed, and set in Ancient Roman times. It's an amazing fic and I'm actually shocked that it's not a book. Check it out

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 **Disclaimer:**

No. I know, I know. I totally should own the characters and the whole entire PJO/HoO regime! But, ya see, I actually don't...

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 ** _Annabeth's P.O.V_**

Oh, Lord. First day back at school. I can't believe we said we'd do this. I can't believe _I_ said I'd do this.

"I can't believe I'm talking to myself while I'm getting ready," I said in front of my full length mirror in my enormous closet, throwing my hands in the air. I'd gotten up at 6:30 to make sure I looked good enough to make an impression on the entire school, but not enough to make them think I'm like the populars, in two hours. I tried to breathe and calm myself down, but I was way to wound up.

I looked back in the mirror. I was wearing black high waisted jeans and a white, long sleeved, turtle neck crop. It didn't look right. I changed into light washed high waisted blue jeans. I laced up my black and white Adidas'.

"Cute." I decided, then walked over to my bathroom. Being in Changing Ways and hanging out with Silena and Ruby really boosted my confidence to wear whatever I wanted without feeling to exposed. And I figured out I looked great in crop tops.

I took out my hair from the messy ponytail that I slept in and brushed it out, still deep in thought. I had Elise and her sisters do my nails again last night, so I had new white nails, which I loved. I straightened my hair and put the top half in a messy bun. I was doing my makeup when Reyna barged into my room.

"ANNABETH!" I jumped when she yelled at me.

"Reyna, you better thank your lucky stars that I wasn't doing my eyeliner or you would've been dead! What do you need?"

"Hazel and Piper are still sleeping, natch, so I need your help." She was wearing a red Adidas crop with purple and green undertones and matching leggings. Her hair was down and wavy. "Gold or silver accessories?"

I thought. "Silver. New Years, not Christmas." She facepalmed.

"Thank the Lord for you. I was about to go with gold. And red lip or too much?"

"What's your other choice?"

"Probably just nude." I sighed and rolled my eyes. It's too early for this.

"Bring your stuff in here." She darted out to grab her stuff. I went back to my mirror and finished my eye shadow. I did a subtle bit of black on the outside and some pinks to make a pretty but low key look. I took out my black liner as Reyna came back in.

"I'm really sorry, Annabeth. I'm just stressed out. I want to look perfect but not perfect and I want Markus to actually notice me this time and-" she froze. I smiled gently at her.

"It's okay, Rey. We'll be fine. And if he doesn't like you, then screw him! He's not good enough for you! Don't tell Piper I said that." She smirked.

"Thanks, Annie."

"Don't call me-"

"Do you need help with your liner?" I huffed, pouted, and looked down to my hands. Reyna was the best with eyeliner.

"Yeah."

"Sit." She pointed to the grey stool by the bathtub. I dragged it by my mirror and sat.

"What do you want?"

"Small- medium flick."

"Sure." I closed my eyes as I felt the cool liquid glide across my eyelid. In a few seconds she was done.

"Grab my fan in the first drawer to the right?" She handed me the beautiful red fan I got when we went to China Town. I fanned my eyes until I felt them dry and opened them. Reyna was finishing putting on her lipstick.

"Well?"

"Love it! Stick with the nude." I got up to finish my make up and check my clock. It was 7:30- an hour before school started. "We gotta hurry. Are the other girls up yet?" We went over to check. I poked my head in Hazel's room and saw her in her closet.

"Annabeth! I can't find what to wear! My other outfit didn't work!" She whined like a toddler and stomped her feet.

"Calm down _chica._ Let me help you." We searched until we found a light jean jumpsuit and declared that it was perfect. We grabbed silver loops for her ears, white Adidas tennis and we changed her makeup so she had red lips. Her hair was loosely braided on her left shoulder. We looked at each other in the mirror, deadpan expressions, and high fived.

"Let's check on Pipes." When we walked in her room, we saw Reyna sitting by Piper, who was wrapped in her blankets. _Are you kidding me?_ I thought. We walked over and I yelled, "Piper, GET UP!" and Hazel threw a pillow at her.

"I am." She answered after dodging the pillow. "I don't want to go." She buried herself further in the blankets.

"Oh, Piper." Hazel sat herself by Reyna.

"It'll be fine, Pipes. Think about it: when Jason sees you now, he'll be begging for your hand in marriage within seconds." She swallowed while Reyna chuckled. She took a deep breath and let it out. Setting a determined look on her face, she pulled herself out of bed and smoothed the wrinkles from her clothes. She was wearing a pink Pink crop and black Pink joggers with her Adidas. Would it make since that we're all wearing Adidas if I said that we have a partnership with Adidas to promote their shoes? Yeah, I thought so.

Her makeup was done subtlety with bold lashes and soft pink lipstick. I looked her up and down.

"Uh- uh." I said, then rummaged through her closet.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"If you want comfy, go for it, but you're not wearing your pajamas. Here." I threw her a white, thin strapped crop with soft pink joggers, a pink bomber jacket and white Adidas to match mine. She sighed and put them on. "Now you look like a hot lady who's gonna go for a walk. Girls?"

"Definitely!" Reyna agreed.

"Perfect!" Hazel echoed.

Piper looked at all of us and sighed. "Okay," She said finally. "Let's do this shit." We cheered as we grabbed our coats and backpacks. Piper Dutch braided her hair down her back and grabbed her phone. She made a call to George, our taxi friend.

"He said he's already out front. I love this guy." We made our way down and gasped. Our bald headed, sweet, little taxi driver was standing by a new limousine in a sharp, black tux. We squealed and headed over towards him.

"Did Apollo approve of you for our new limo driver?!" Reyna asked excitedly.

"Maybe so, Miss Reyna." We all hugged him excitedly. "Well, get in! We don't want you late for school! It's 8:00!"

We hopped in to see our breakfast beautifully laid out with our names written on each Starbucks cup. I hungrily grabbed my orange scone and grande vanilla latte.

"You're amazing, Georgie. I don't know how I could live without you!"

"That's what I strive for Miss Annabeth." And with that, he started the car and was off to the last place I wanted to be.

* * *

"Here we are!" George announced before he rolled up the window that he used to talk to us through. I drained the last bit of my coffee and shook my head. _Be ready, Annabeth. Be ready. You got this. You've faced scarier things._

George opened the door and I grabbed Reyna's hand, who grabbed Piper's, who grabbed Hazel's. I forced myself out of the car and five feet away. I let go of Reyna's hand and the breath I didn't realize I was holding.

"Good luck, girls!" George said, handing us our backpacks.

"Thank you. We'll need it." Hazel smiled at him. We stared at the school as George left us. A few people started to recognize us and I realized we needed to go in. I checked the Apple Watch on my wrist. 8:35. _Perfect._

"Okay." I looked to the other girls. I put in a brave smile. "Let's do this!" Hazel whooped as we walked in. We pushed open the doors, and at first I was a little nervous by the amount of people staring at us. It got a little bit quieter and I grabbed Reyna's hand again. She squeezed back and shifted the weight of her back to her other shoulder. Hazel hooked on to Piper's arm and Piper defiantly stuck her chin up a little higher. People started talking regularly but coming up to us and complementing is on some of the new singles we released. I was completely shocked for what felt like the longest time. Then I relaxed and talked normally, thanking them and answering questions.

"Great question!" I heard Piper say. "Everyone listen up!" The group of people huddled around us quieted. "If you're wondering when the EP's coming out, we're going to the shoot today. If the cover is approved..." she paused and everyone leaned in. I smirked- this was why she was so good at debate and theater. "The album will be out Friday, March 23rd." Some people whistled and some cheered. I felt my cheeks heat up a little bit. This attention was actually... really nice.

The bell rang and the crowd dispersed. We headed over to our lockers and I prayed I remembered the combination. I spun the lock and it opened. My old decorations were still up, and they helped a lot with my organization. I slammed my locker shut. I forgot how much I loved doing that. First class: Biology with Hazel. I walked over to Hazel and hooked arms with her.

"Off to Biology?" She nodded, grinning, and we headed off. The period past by decently fast. First of all, the teacher, Mrs. Lakely, loved our songs and was already an incredibly nice teacher. A bunch of kids passed us notes, asking questions similar to those we answer before the bell. Second and third period were the pretty much the same. Then came lunch.

As the girls and I entered the cafeteria, I remembered how hungry school made me. We found our usual table- which was empty as it would be if we hadn't even left- and plopped down. A crowd of people rushed in, and most saw us and sat down with us, introducing themselves and telling us how good we were. I smiled back and thanked them for most of the lunch. I was finishing up until I heard screeching. My first awesome school day was ruined at lunch. Shit. I wasn't read to face them yet. I was doing so well-"

"Oh, my, God. What the hell are you losers doing back here?!" Drew screeched. Rachel and Miranda stared at us, disgusted.

"We're just going through our classes, like a normal day," Hazel said sharply. "Right, girls?" We nodded and looked back at them.

"And how's the plastic surgery going, Drew?" Piper asked innocently. "Still going strong on the implants?" I snorted. Damn, that girl got feisty!

Drew looked completely shocked that Piper stood up to her. Then she was full on pissed. But guess what? So were we.

"How dare you, you little _whore!"_ Rachel screamed.

I looked around. "Oh, silly Rachel! Even though she's spotless and pure, Piper's not a mirror."

Someone behind me yelled, "Oh shit! Buuurn!" Drew silenced him with one look. A lot of people had gathered around us now to see what was going on.

"Oh, wow!" Miranda sneered sarcastically. "Looky here at the little garbage girls, finally defending themselves." She sarcastically clapped. "It's about time something fun happened around here! Girls, go for it!" Rachel pounced at me and threw orange juice on my _white_ shirt. She grabbed some pasta from my thermos and twirled it in my hair. She danced out of my swings.

"There!" She exclaimed as Miranda and Drew cackled. "Much prettier!" I looked down at myself and Piper came over to me and inspected me. Tears welled up in my eyes. _Not here!_ I scolded myself. _Don't let them see you cry!_

"You little fuck!" Hazel yelled at her. She stood up to get face to face with Rachel.

"And what are you going to do about it, Sweet Peach?" The cafeteria laughed as Hazel burned up. All of a sudden there was a sickening slap. I looked up to see Rachel holding her cheek and Reyna above her. _Oh my God. Reyna hit her!_

"Ugh! How dare you, you little twerp!"

"Excuse me?" Reyna asked dangerous and loud, a wild look in her eye. "How dare I?"

"Oh, shit." Piper muttered beside me.

"Yes, you deaf shit!" Drew came up behind her and crossed her arms. I gasped- that's exactly what her abusive, biological father called her. And Reyna lost it.

 _"¡Ven acá maldito cabrón, mamabicho!"_ She pounced at Drew and punched her in the face. The room started chanting, ' _Fight, fight, fight!'_ She yelled more Spanish at her, slapping her every other word as Rachel and Miranda ran away screaming. Reyna kept shrieking at Drew as she cried. Reyna had tears of her own staining her cheeks. She slapped Drew one last time and turned back around to us.

"Let's go." She grabbed her bag and lunch box and stormed out of the now silent room. We hurried to follow her with our things. She turned to us with tears streaming down her face. "Find the next restrooms."

We nodded and started to search. I grabbed some towels and desperately tried to clean off my shirt and shake the spaghetti out of my hair. Piper tried help me get out the stain, but it refused to come out. Hazel was trying to calm Reyna, but that one thing that Drew called her brought back the memories of her terrible, awful past. We were about 20 seconds from the cafeteria when we heard familiar voices round the corner.

We all stopped in our tracks, just staring. Finally, Percy stepped forward and I barely took a step towards him. He walked over to me, staring at my stained shirt with wide eyes, and picked out a string of spaghetti. I sobbed and fell into his arms, both of us practically erasing that night from our memories.

"Who did this?" He asked.

"Rachel." I whispered. He tensed up and pulled away a little to look down at me. I stared into his eyes, the last thing I remember of the night I said good bye.

"I need to talk to you later. I'll be back. Where are you going to be?"

"Fourth period is music." I murmured.

"Good." He mumbled back. We inched closer without realizing it. I caught it as we were about to brush lips. I cleared my throat and tried not to look at his mouth or eyes.

"I- um... I better clean up..."

"Yeah..." He whispered. He hesitated, then kissed my cheek. He took off towards the cafeteria and left my speechless and motionless. I looked around to see Jason stalking after Percy, Piper crying hard. Frazel was talking, Frank trying to calm down a fuming Hazel. I smiled. _It's way too obvious he likes her._ I looked around for Reyna, but didn't see a sign of her, or Markus. I shook my head to get out of my delirious state and turned back to my left.

"Pipes, no. No- oh, babe." I hugged her, trying not to get orange juice all over her. I handed her one of the tissues I was using and we looked for a bathroom.

"Hey Frank," I asked. "You pass a bathroom?" He looked over at us, concerned in a very brotherly way.

"Yeah. Around the corner, to the left. Hazel... you agree?" She nodded and smiled at him.

"Thanks, Frank." He smiled back, then smiled at us.

"You got the other guys _mad._ I think Percy's going to go tell off Rachel, and Jason's going to break up with Drew."

"Wait, what? Jason and- and Drew?!" He nodded and blew out a puff of air.

"He wanted to do it since they got together Monday before break. He hadn't had a good excuse until now. You go get cleaned up."

"Thanks, Frank." I said.

"Of course." He said, then jogged to catch up with his friends. We headed to where Frank said the bathroom was and trudged in. Hazel was pretty much calmed down, so she helped Piper with her makeup. Piper dug a fresh shirt that was an exact replica of my dirty shirt in black.

"I've never left the house without extra clothes since the Dragon Balls' Incident." She sniffed. I changed super fast and fixed my make up. When I was done I looked to Piper.

"You good, Pipes?"

"Yeah. I'm good. Let's finish this shitty day. We're leaving with Thalia and Leo for the shoot afterwards. We could look forward to that." She took in a deep breath. I did, too.

"Let's push through the this." We turned to leave as someone came in.

"Shit. Not you, too!" Hazel rolled her eyes as Calypso came in, much more modest than her comrades with a white crop top and short shorts. _How in January?_ I wondered.

"Wait! Don't leave!" She said, her voice cracking. I was so surprised that I stopped. "Just, hear me out."

"We're waiting." Piper crossed her arms. Calypso looked to the floor.

"I'm so sorry about what happened. I'm sorry that I had anything to do with those whores. They corrupted me." She had actual tears in her eyes when she looked up. "I didn't mean to get caught up in their disgusting behaviors. And it's partly my fault that you're in this mess..." She choked up.

Oh, wow. She was dead serious. I walked over to her and smiled at her. " I understand. You were new and they were the people who got to you first. Yeah?" She nodded. "Well, then you have nothing to be sorry for. They _did_ corrupt you. But we can help you!"

"Yeah," Piper agreed. She came over to us and put a hand on Calypso's shoulder. "We understand, don't we Hazel?"

Hazel smiled. "Totally. It's those rotton bitches fault. You can totally hang out with us if you want. We can start by... maybe... a sleep over this weekend at the penthouse?"

She gasped. "Are you serious? After everything- everything I've done to you?"

"For sure. Only if you want, though."

"Are you kidding?" She asked deadpanned. "I'd love to!" She squealed and hugged Piper. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! I won't let you guys down!"

"We know." I smiled at her. Only one mysterious thought clouded my mind. Where was Reyna?

* * *

 **You'll have to translate Reyna's Spanish by yourself. I actually felt like I needed a shower when I looked it up and wrote it.**

 _ **~TheKeeperGeek**_


	10. Ten- Only History, Nothing More

**MANDATORY! (not really but you know)**

 **Bleep. Blep. Bloop. Ship name time! So I thought about ship names for Reyna and Markus. (I just realized- I never really explained why Markus is suddenly alive and a thing. Since Percabeth and Jasper are/were actually canon, Reyna doesn't have a canon relationship. So, bam- Markus. There was also another reason why, but that has to wait... Tee- hee!)**

 **So, being the lazy person I am, I pulled up a ship name generator. I can sense all the hate coming off some people, and this is before I've posted it. But I liked:**

 **~Rekus**

 **~Reykus**

 **~Markeyna**

 **~Mareyna**

 **for ship names for Reyna and Markus. And now, you should really vote on which one you like- OR make a suggestion of your own(!)- so I don't have to make a decision on my own and it turn out to be really, really stupid. Thanks!**

* * *

 ** _SHOUT OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUTTTSS!:_**

Another story shout out! Guys (and girls), if you haven't read this one, you absolutely _have_ to. It's called **Beautiful** , by **Forfun100.** It's a high school drama AU, and it's incredibly moving. Like, I literally started crying when Annabeth- wait. You'll just have to read.

* * *

 **Disclaimer:** I can't think of anything good right now. I don't own PJO/HoO or the characters exception of Markus.

* * *

 ** _Reyna's P.O.V_**

 _"No, stop it! Stop it! NO!" I walked out of my small room to see what was wrong. My teddy, Sophia, was clutched in my four year old arms as I peeked around the corner wall by the stairs that showed a full view of our tiny living room. Daddy was pressing Hylla against the wall and loving her. I always asked why she screamed, and why she didn't like it. I thought that love was supposed to be a good thing. She told me that it wasn't love. Love was supposed to be nice. But Daddy said that it was nice._

 _"Stop it! No, you're hurting me!" Hylla cried and tried to hit him away._

 _"Shut up!" He took a long drink from the bottle in his hand and kissed her. She screamed again and hit him away. He said a bad word and hit her across the face. She was knocked to the ground and I felt really mad._

 _"Stop it, Papa- You're hurting her!" They both turned over to me. Hylla shook her head with wide eyes._

 _"Reyna," she warned me. "Go back to our room."_

 _"Shut up, bitch." Papa hit her again and she shouted._

 _"No!"_ _I went down the stairs to check on her, but she started pushing me away._

 _"Get out, you deaf shit!" Papa said. That made me feel really bad. I started crying, but he didn't care._

 _"Shut up! Get back in your room, or I'll knock the shit out of you!"_

 _"Papa, you're making me sad!" I cradled Sophia closer to my chest as my father leaned down in my face._

 _"Did I hurt your feelings, Reyna?"_

 _"Yes, Papa." I started feeling a little better. He would say sorry. He loved me, right? That's why he let me and Hylla eat his left overs. That's why he let us have our own room and clean water and a place to live. Instead of a nicer look in his eyes, the turned darker as he slapped me across the face. I squealed as I hit the ground._

 _"Well, that's how life is!" He slowly smiled, which made me even more scared. "I could teach you how life is, like I teach Hylla." He started getting closer to me, and I started inching away. If Hylla didn't really like it, then I didn't want him to touch me._

 _"No!" Hylla screamed again, her pretty much naked body trying to shield mine. "Don't do this, Julian! She's young- she knows nothing!" She tried to kiss him again, but he threw her aside. She cried and cried as he got closer to me, and I cried with her. I was scared. I didn't want him to kiss me. He hurt Hylla. I don't want him to love me._

 _"Please don't, Papa. I'm scared!"_

 _"Don't be, Reyna! Your sister isn't worthy of love. You've been a good girl. You're worthy of affection. You deserve it!" I deserved it?_

 _"Reyna..." Hylla muttered. "Don't... listen... it hurts... don't let him..." He turned around._

 _"Shut up, you whore!" He hit her with the bottle in his hand and she slumped again to the ground._

 _"No!" I cried out. "Hylla!" I looked back up to my father with tears flooding my eyes. "You're mean."_

 _He looked back to me slowly with a snarl on his face. "I'm mean? You think I'm mean?" He grabbed my tiny face with his hand, pulling me to face him. His toxic breath, drowned with alcohol, made me try to squirm away._

 _"Listen to me, you deaf shit! I've raised you and fed you while your mother left you to go to America. I've kept you alive! Now you'll repay me by KEEPING YOUR FUCKING MOUTH SHUT!" He put down his bottle and hit me. Hard. My vision started to get fuzzy, but I vaguely saw Hylla standing up again, trying to hit him away from me. Sophia was on the floor beside me, and as I reached for her, my father stepped on her and tore up her stitching. I gasped. She was the only thing I had. The only except..._

 _"You used to be better than this!" She screamed. "You used to be kind and loving! Until you left for Iraq. Now you take out your bouts of insanity on us!" He hit her across the face and she fell, beat up and both physically and mentally exhausted._

 _"Stop it, Julian!" I yelled. I ran up to him and started hitting him with my little fists, not knowing what to do except get him away from Hylla. I remember what Mama told me: if you're in danger, scream for help. So I screamed. I screamed until my throat was raw. I didn't have to fake it much. He hit me and hit me. He ripped off my white nightgown and raked his belt across my back. And I screamed._

 _Eventually, though it was probably only five minutes later, there was banging on the door._

 _Papa cursed. "Fuck it, you deaf shit!" He scowled, then smiled very scarily, and I felt like I was in one of those horror movies. "Maybe deaf would suit you better." He picked up his bottle and swung. I tried to scream again, but my hoarse throat refused. I hid my face in my hands, but I was never hit. A crash sounded in front of me as my older sister fell to the ground._

 _"HYLLA!" I bent over her to see if she was breathing. She had jumped in front of me at the perfect time. A small trickle of blood leaked from the side of her head as the door was busted down and the police swarmed in._

 _Julian looked for an out, but saw none. He scowled at me and hissed, but never laid his hands on me. He was handcuffed and forced out of the house. A small lady came up to me while I was trying to wake up Hylla._

 _"Sweetie?" She asked softly. I turned around to see her and I tried to help up Hylla._

 _"Are you here to help us?" I heard yelling outside. Papa looked like he was trying to get away. It looked like they were hurting him._

 _"Papa?"_

* * *

"Papa?" I blinked opened my eyes.

"What?" Markus asked. We were in an empty classroom that Markus had dragged me into. While I was having my little flashback, he had jammed a desk in front of the door and turned on the lights. The teacher had walked out per Markus' request.

"Rey, what's wrong?" I didn't realize I was crying until he had wiped a tear off my cheek. "What happened in there?"

Oh, yeah. I had beat up Drew. Oops. I tried to clear my mind from that horrible night and focus on the person in front of me. Markus was looking at me, concerned. His face scrunched up really cute when he did that. The area between his eyebrows creased and the playful twinkle in his gorgeous eyes dimmed just enough to change the emotion- oh my God. What the hell am I doing right now?

"Um... I... I don't know. I don't know what came over-" my voice broke. My hand flew up the my mouth as I cleared my throat and took in a deep breath. I closed my eyes, shaking my head. He didn't know. He wouldn't understand, would he? How terrible _he_ was- is. How I can't stand to visit him. How I can't stand to even think about that name. I looked back at Markus.

"It's hard to explain. It's a really, really long story. A story we don't have time for."

He smiled a little. "I have time. I don't need lunch anyways. No use following Jason to break up with Drew." Wait, _what?_ Jason and _Drew?!_ Oh, lord. Piper knew, didn't she? The dick couldn't wait until she was back, could he? He needed a default until she showed up. If I wasn't so upset, then I'd be full on pissed again.

"... and I don't have the emotional strength for it." He sighed and took my hand. I softly gasped.

"It's okay, Rey. You can tell me anything. I'm here for you." I wound up telling him everything. How my father beat me. How he raped Hylla and was about to do the same to me. How he broke a bottle of whiskey on my eight year old sister's head and put her in a coma she still hasn't woken up from. How he's in a jail somewhere in Virginia so he couldn't get to me or my sister again easily, at least for the next 15 years. How I had to testify in court. How I was four, and I had to watch it all happen. I had to _let_ it all happen.

I was crying so hard I was getting a headache while he rubbed my hand and never said a thing. When I was finished, we were both silent for a few awkward minutes. I finally was able to stop crying, but he was still silent. I didn't blame him- I would be extremely surprised if all of that was thrown in my face, too. I looked down to our intertwined hands and studied the way his thumb traced circles on the back of my hand. I haven't been able to get this close to him without backing up and making a smart remark or something like that. The girls only knew the summed up version, but now, he knew it all. I had told him the entire thing.

"Wow," was all he said for another minute. He looked me up and down and shook his head. "I, uh, can't believe that something like- like that could, uh, ever happen to someone... to anyone. Oh my God." He sighed as I took in a deep breath.

"Well, shit." His eyes grew. "Oh, man. Sorry! Too soon?" I laughed at his expression.

"It's fine. Well, I guess not. But it's only history, nothing more. It's made me who I am today. I just have to try to convince myself that that's a good person, and I'm the best I could possibly-" I was silenced my a small kiss.

"You're beautiful, intelligent, and incredibly strong." He said when he pulled away. "I just don't want to believe that something so traumatic would make you who you are."

... did he just kiss me? No, but really. Was I just kissed by Markus? Like, lip to lip contact? My blood was racing and I thought I was going to faint. Was that normal? I mean, honestly, when a super cute and super sweet guy kisses you for the first time... oh my God. That was my first kiss. Oh. My. God. My first kiss was with Markus McLean and he was... asking me something?

"What?" He laughed and I turned beet red. I nervously pushed an invisible strand of hair behind my ear. "Sorry- I didn't hear you. I was just, kind of surprised and-" Again I was shut up, but this time I pulled him closer to me, wrapping my arms around his neck. I pulled away and smiled up at him. He smirked and looped his arms around my waist.

"So, why did you do it?"

"Hm?"

"Why did you kiss me?" I specified. "Because I was babbling and you needed to shut me up, or because you pitied me, or what?" he looked up like he was thinking hard.

"Well," he started. "You were getting kind of annoying talking about how you had to force yourself to believe you were a good person. And of course, I pity you. No one should ever have to be put through what you went through. And there might be another reason."

"Oh?" I raised an eyebrow. "And what would that be?"

He hesitated a while before he muttered to himself, "Holy crap, I didn't think I'd do it like this." I tilted my head to the side a bit.

"Do what?" He was still quiet. "Markus, you're scaring me." He looked at me, smiled, and took a deep breath. All while I was extremely nervous that he was going to tell me he had a secret girlfriend.

"Reyna, I've liked you ever since I met you." I gasped. He _what?!_ "Piper and I had just moved from California, and you were the shy girl who hated us. For some reason, that made me like you, and I wanted to know you. Luckily, Piper proved you wrong and you became best friends within the first day. You introduced her to Annabeth and Hazel, which introduced me to the guys. How random and awesome it turned out was beyond me, but we all knew each other and... well, I figured out I had a crush on you freshman year. I think I fell in love with you sophomore year. The guys said that they didn't know how you hadn't figured out that I liked you. I was that bad. But I'm human, so sue me. I've been planning it for a while, but then you went away and got a record deal and now you're famous. I didn't think you were coming back. But before I loose you again, I need to ask you..."

I waited. Honestly, he was taking forever. He could've taken longer but we'd already be married with three kids named Alexis, James, and Raquel aged 20, 17, and 13, living in a New York mansion with our loving puppy named Jorge. Wait, what?

He took a deep breath. "Reyna, will you be my girlfriend?" ... don't scream, don't scream, don't scream. Breathe. Was I dreaming? Yeah. It was one of those really intense dreams, right? The kind you have before or after something important or embarrassing happened where everything seems real and you can hear and smell stuff, but it's really just you talking in your sleep and your friends waving his shirt in your face and responding to you and recording the whole thing to torture you with when you wake up and forever after that and you're actually making out with a fish from Costco? Ah, memories. Sorry, Hazel, but the timing couldn't have been more perfect!

But seriously? I was being too extra about this. So I decided to test it the trusty, old- fashioned way. I grabbed a chunk of flesh on my arm and twisted it.

"Fuck!" I yelled. Yep, it was very real!

"Why did you do that?" Markus asked, grabbing my left arm and examining it. A large, red spot faded into existence, but I could care less. I turned his face back to mine with a twinkle in my eyes and a huge grin.

"Yes. Oh my God, yes!" He smiled and cheered as I laughed, and I discovered something in those 20 short minutes- I really liked kissing him.

* * *

We gave Mr. Dionysus his classroom back, which he made clear to never 'steal' again- even though Markus had asked and gotten consent from the same person. The poor, old drunk. We walked out hand in hand to find our friends and get to our next class. We had fourth period together, which made me relieved. I honestly felt like I'd get depressed if I wasn't by him for the next thirty minutes. And now I sounded like one of those needy, over the top girlfriends that are literally non-functional without their boyfriends. I tried to rid myself of those thoughts, but nothing could wipe off the love sick grin off my face.

"Why are you smiling like that?" He asked. "Don't get me wrong, you're even more beautiful when you smile." I rolled my eyes. No matter how cute it was and he was, his ass-kissery was going to get annoying. "But it's wider and brighter than I've seen it in a while. Did I do this?"

I leaned my head on his shoulder. "Maybe. I just can't believe that I can tell you that I love you whenever I want." He hugged me around the waist and kissed the top of my head.

"Oh. My. GOD!" I jumped away from him as Annabeth and Hazel stormed up to us.

"You know, I don't think I can be mad at you for ditching us when I hear you say something utterly romantic and see Markus McLean hug and kiss you." Annabeth crossed her arms and pursed her lips.

"Well," Markus started, pulling me back over to him. "I figured that's how a guy tells his gorgeous girlfriend he loves her." The stupid, sappy smile washed back on my face.

"WHAT?!" Piper had marched over and joined my crusade of friends. They all looked like power kegs about to explode. They swarmed him, knocking me away and threatening him.

"How'd you do it?"

"Why now? Why not earlier?"

"Were you waiting for her to get back?"

"Is it because she's popular now?"

"I swear, Markus, if you break her heart, I'll break your ass and let you explain to Dad why you're in the hospital!"

He managed to shake them off. "Okay, okay! Shit, girls are scarier than I thought!" Piper shrugged.

"The longer into this, the more you'll learn."

Hazel patted his back. "A protection plan comes with the girlfriend." His eyes grew and shot over to me. I put my hands up in surrender.

"I don't really have control over them, and I never told you that it'd be a piece of cake." I grabbed onto his arm. "But I'll make sure they don't hit you too hard." We started towards the class. "I'm Latina- that's _my_ job." The girls laughed as Markus groaned. We reached the door and the girls went inside.

"Wait!" I let the door close behind them and turned to Markus. "When are we going to tell everybody? I mean, with everything that happened and is still happening, maybe we should keep this kind of hidden right now. You know?" I don't know why I was whispering. The halls were deserted and the door was closed, but with my short experience with fame, the paparazzi will always- I mean _always-_ find you.

"Yeah, I know." He whispered back. "But eventually, you know I'll have to meet your mom." My face scrunched up.

"You've already met my mom."

"Not as your boyfriend."

Even though he smirked, a sharp pain erupted in my stomach as I flashed back to that phone call. I pulled up a smile.

"I know. In good time."

He kissed my cheek. "In good time." He held the door open for me and we headed into the last class of the day. I looked for our friends to find them sitting on opposite sides of the riser- like seats. He shrugged at me and went to sit by the guys as I moved towards the girls. I sat down and ignored Hazel's suggestive gestures and Piper and Annabeth's giggles.

"Welcome!" Sounded in the huge classroom. Five figures dressed in white appeared on the large stage used for teaching. The quintet started a jazzy chorus.

"Welcome," the middle one, Mrs. Calliope, repeated, "to a brand new semester of Advanced Music!" (Oh, yeah. If you don't know what instrument you wanted to play but you good musically, you do Advanced Music.)

"We hope that you all had a wonderful break!" Said Ms. Clio.

"We don't have much of a lesson plan today," Mrs. Euterpe started.

"So we're going to do a small worksheet for a daily grade." Mrs. Polyhymnia finished. The class groaned. We rarely did anything that wasn't to our interest.

"Well, if you complain, I guess we won't give you the rest of the time for whatever you want and make you watch a documentary instead." Ms. Terpsichore lightly threatened. They ended the chorus and passed out the papers. Once we got our copy, we filled it out within a minute and a half. It was only ten questions, and they were super easy.

"All the practice and sound proofed rooms are open, so you may go in there if you please."

"And no drugs, tobacco or alcohol allowed!" Ms. Clio seemingly looked at a few people, then the sisters went back into their offices. We all looked at each other, then sprinted down to turn in the papers to get the best sound room. We ran down a hall to the right of the stage to a door on the left. I took out the key that was jammed in the handle, hurried the girls in, and locked it. Hazel turned on the light to the small room, which held a small keyboard and two different kinds of guitars.

"Wow." Annabeth said. "Feels like forever since we've been in here."

"Yeah, it really does." Piper agreed. "What are we gonna work on?"

"Why not everything?" I asked, pulling out our song book. They shrugged as I opened it up to a random page.

"Looks like we're starting with Wings!" I said.

"Perfect!" Piper exclaimed. "Love this one." We were finishing warming up when a tap at the door startled us. I turned to see the boys waving stupidly in the window. We giggled and I unlocked the door, letting them in.

"Hello, ladies!" Percy called. "Welcome back to hell- I mean, _school._ Now, sing for me, because I'm bored as shit and my phone died." Annabeth and Piper giggled as Hazel rolled her eyes and messed up his hair. Frank hugged me, giving me a stiff 'welcome back.' I looked at him with my head tilted, and he lightened up.

"Hey, it's the crazy one." Jason came in and looked at me. I crossed my arms and looked him up and down.

"Calm down, Jase. She has a good reason." Markus came in behind him and clapped him on his shoulder. Smiling, he hugged be from behind and set his chin on my shoulder. A grin faded onto my face as I leaned my head against his. The girls melted.

"AWWWWWW!" They leaned against each other and sniffed as the boys yelled at us to get a room.

"I need this!" Annabeth said. "Why are y'all so perfect less than twenty- four hours of being together? In less than a _single_ hour of being together?"

"Because we're meant to be?" I answered.

"Ugh, shut up! You're not making me feel any better." I smiled and shrugged.

"All right, let's sing." Piper announced. "Finish this crappy day and move on." She and Jason were eyeing each other pretty intensely, and I knew that I wasn't the only one who noticed. I pulled away from Markus' warmth and joined the girls. Hazel pulled up the song on her computer and hit play. We sang for a while, editing the songs and just chatting with the guys. It felt nice to be able to just sit down and talk with them instead of trying desperately to avoid anything that has to do with them. When the bell rang, we grabbed all of our things and headed to the main doors, making sure to lock up the practice room behind us. Piper suddenly gasped and yanked her phone out of her pocket.

"What is it, Pipes?" Markus asked. She held up a finger as she dialed a number.

"Yeah, hey! Are you taking us to the shoot?... Yeah, perfect! No, yeah." She looked up at Jason. "I have a surprise for you. Okay? Okay, yeah, bye!" She hung up and smiled. "I'm about to make someone really happy." She readjusted her backpack and trotted out the door, leaving us to follow in confusion. Once we walked out of the huge double doors, we saw a limo waiting out front for us. I rolled my eyes. Always trying to show us off, Leo and... oh my God.

Piper walked up to the window and motioned out. Thalia stepped out of the car in a long sleeved white shirt tucked into black flared pants with a bow. She put her black sunglasses on her head as she talked to Piper, who pointed up towards us. Thalia put her hands up to her mouth and slowly started walking towards us. I heard someone suck in a breath beside me, and turned to see Jason staring at her, wide eyed. The boys were confused, but Annabeth put a hand on his arm and smiled at him, nodding her head at his sister. He started forward and met her in a hug, spinning her around and laughing. For a few minutes, they just stayed there in their embrace.

"H- how?" He finally managed to ask. She laughed through a few joyful tears.

"I'm their manager. I've come to bring them to their photo shoot, and I run into you. And I can't believe how tall you've gotten! You're taller than me, and you're graduating. Jason... I can't believe it!" This moment was so sweet and sentimental, the girls and I couldn't help but make a joke out of it.

"Wait. Is that Thalia Grace... _crying?_ " Hazel asked.

"Are you serious? She has actual emotions?" Annabeth asked, overly astounded.

"I know, right?" I agreed. "I thought she was only capable of deathly annoyance!"

"Ugh, shut up, you hoes." That made everyone laugh. Thalia wiped her eyes gently. "All right- get in the car! Marianne is going to be _pissed_ if we're late." She let go of Jason and started walking towards the car.

"Wait," Annabeth called. "You were just reunited with Jason after _three years_ of not seeing each other because your job that's taken you anywhere but closer to him and _his_ busy schedule, and now you're saying 'let's go?' Does that make any sense to anyone?"

"Yes it does, if eight people get in the car so Marianne doesn't kill me! So get your lazy asses in the car!" I shook my head. Oh, Thalia. I slid in, saying a hello to George.

"Hello, Miss Reyna. How was your first day back?" I looked at the girls.

"Um, I'd rather not say?" He nodded in the rear view mirror.

"I figured it might be a little hard. I didn't expect your friends coming, so I didn't get them any milkshakes-"

"Ugh, my favorite George, I don't know how to repay you for your incredible-ness." Hazel greedily grabbed a chocolate peppermint shake and slurped it. I picked up my vanilla shake and sipped it as Jason and Thalia talked. George smiled at us and rolled up the window, separating him from us.

The 20 minute ride wasn't filled with that much conversation. A few questions were exchanged, but most of it was awe at the limo.

"What are you shooting for again?" Frank asked me.

"The cover for Introduction." I got a few confused looks. "That's the title of our debut EP."

My cheeks tinged with a bit of pink when I talked about our huge success in a short amount of time. In some ways, it felt to me as if we cheated. Most people have to work their way to get these things for years and years. Sure, we've been writing for years, but we got an entire life time worth of success for some people in one night. If you thought about it... no, nope. Was _not_ even going to go there. I needed all the positive things I could get my hands on for the shoot so I don't freak out and loose it. Okay- I have an amazing vanilla milkshake in my hands. I _am_ working with Apollo Solace, but that's just fate. It's what was meant to happen! And I also have a boyfriend, which was still really weird to admit. But it was fine, because I didn't have to understand it all right now. I just had to trust that the best was yet to come. No matter where my past held me, my future was approaching, and that's what I would focus on. The coming future.

And boy, was it coming.

* * *

 **I wanted to have Reyna's dad in here because he isn't present in the books, and when the book mentioned him, it said that he really wasn't all that great of a person after he came back from Iraq. I don't think Julian raped his daughters, but I just wanted to be cruel and say that that was why he isn't present in her life and the story. And sorry that the Reyna/Markus thing happened so early- I have terribly cruel plans for them. And boy, is the future coming...**

 **BTW, I was having extremely great ideas- _other_ than the Reyna/Markus plans- while writing this entire chapter. My name, age and location are classified because of reasons that are approaching in the coming chapters. Sorry in advance for your possible pain. Oops. *evilly cackles in the background* I've actually always wanted to try that... it's on my ' _Ridiculous but Awesome Things to Do at the Perfect Time'_ bucket list.**

 **And finally, did anyone catch that Hamilton reference? (The song is Right Hand Man, in case you were confused)**

 **And you should totally give me a review and tell me what you think about _Possibly Noticed_ so far! Thanks for reading! Trying by best not to sound super cheesy!**

 _ **~TheKeeperGeek**_


	11. Eleven- Whatever it Takes

**OH MY GOD I UPDATED! AND HAPPY SPRING BREAK! (i mean, it took long enough)**

* * *

 ** _SHOUT OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUTTTSS!:_**

You know what? I'm just gonna make a list of awesomeness because I couldn't figure out how to put it in sentence format without it being, like, really mega strange:

 **~awkwardfangirl:** following _Possibly Noticed_ , favoriting _Possibly Noticed_ , following moi!

 **~Audra Foster:** following _Possibly Noticed!_

 **~New-Zealands-Version-Of-Pluto:** favoriting _Possibly Noticed_ , following _Possibly Noticed_!

 **~FuddyDuddy-strikhedonia:** favoriting moi, following _Possibly Noticed,_ favoriting _Possibly Noticed,_ following moi!

 **~Just-your-AAverage-FanGGurl:** favoriting _Possibly Noticed_ , following moi!

 **~21kantep:** following _Possibily Noticed_ , favoriting _Possibily Noticed_!

Ladies and/or Gentlemen, you rock! Thanks for loving it! I want y'all to enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy writing it. Tell me what you think should happen- I love hearing what you guys have to say. (Also, your pen names are awesome =D)

* * *

 **Disclaimer:**

 **Uncle Rick:** Don't. Even. Think about it.

 **Me:** But I thought about it...

 **Uncle Rick:** *sigh* Don't listen to her. All rights belong to me.

 **Me:** Fiiiiiiine. But I get the plot! That one goes to _me_.

 **Uncle Rick** : Whatever.

 **Me:** And Markus. I also get him, too!

 **Uncle Rick:** Fine, just get-

 **Me:** And I also get a million dollars.

 **Uncle Rick:** Sure. I mean, no! I mean-

 **Me:** HA HA! NO TAKESY BACKSIES! IT'S MINE! NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY!

* * *

 ** _Annabeth's P.O.V_**

As we pulled up to Marianne's studio, I finished my root beer float and dove out of the car. I remembered the last time we came to shoot for Adidas and we were fifteen minutes late because _someone_ couldn't get their lazy ass out of bed. _*cough* Hazel *cough*_ Yeah... poor Thalia. I plan to never get on Marianne's bad side again- it literally scared the piss out of me. Hazel and Thalia had the same idea, I discovered, as we all flew into the grey building. Hazel started pressing the up button for the elevator like a maniac as Thalia checked us in at the huge, white front desk in the center of the area. Piper and Reyna got in a few seconds later, scrubbing their faces with makeup wipes while the boys trailed behind them.

"Why are y'all in such a big hurry?" Percy chuckled as Piper threw me the bag of makeup wipes.

"When you get up there, you'll understand." I explained, scrubbing the living hell out of my face. The elevator dinged open as Thalia came speed walking back. We pilled in the elevator to get up to the third floor, and if you haven't ridden in an elevator with eight teenagers and a twenty one year old... good.

"I don't know why you and Hazel were sprinting up to the doors. We still have ten minutes." Piper said as she got the last of her makeup off.

I scoffed. "Do you even remember what happened last time? Hazel couldn't pull herself out of bed and we all got yelled at... well, mostly Thalia. But it was still freaky! And with Marianne, I'd rather be ten minutes early than one second late."

"Please, all of her yelling was directed at me!" Thalia groaned. "She adores you girls! She's not gonna give a shit if _you're_ late, she's gonna get on my ass if _I'm_ late!" The elevator slid open to reveal two doors that opened up to a huge studio with different colored walls. A small woman with a brown bob and shining green eyes rounded the corner in a simple white jumpsuit and a huge smile.

"Thank God, I thought that Thalia was going to bring you in late again!" Marianne said, throwing obvious shade at Thalia, who just rolled her eyes. She came up to us and kissed our cheeks, saying how she already had something amazing, gorgeous, and stunning planned out for us. She shooed us towards hair and makeup as she starts talking to Thalia about the set up of the shoot. We walk past the wall to our right for a little ways until we pass the studio portion and get to hair and make up.

"Hey, girls!" Said Rose, head of makeup at the studio. "Welcome back to the communist country of Marianne-ton."

"I heard that, Rosalie!" Marianne shouted from around the corner. Rose shook her head and led us over to the many vanities. I went over to the last chair to the right and sat down in front of Sam after he gave me air kisses.

Sam is... a character. Honestly, he's one of the nicest people I've ever known. He's very flamboyant, not at all afraid of the spotlight. He's very proud he's gay and will do anything to let everyone know that. His hair and eye color changed almost every time I saw him. Today, he had platinum blonde hair, and light blue contacts. His makeup- 'glam', as he calls it- was done lightly and very subtle, so I know he only got up a few hours ago after staying up all night.

"How _are_ you, darling? I heard you and the girls had to go back to school today? Ugh, how tragic!"

I solemnly nodded. "I know, and it sucked horse shit."

"Tsk, tsk. No cursing in the Chair of Wonders!" He chided me. "And, btw, would you mind telling me who the four pretty boys are?" He directed to the guys with his head. They were standing behind us, looking a little confused on where they were supposed to be. I crossed my arms as Sam ogled them and rolled my eyes at the ever thirsty little flirt. I remember going out with him, the girls, Ruby, Becca, Amber, and Rita after the huge shoot we did to get ready for the three singles we put out. There was a group of frat boys passing us, and guess who refused to not send three pictures to every person he knew under the age of twenty five? SAM!

"Those are our friends. And also Reyna's boyfriend. And Piper's brother. And Reyna's brother."

"What? Sorry, darling- you lost me." I got up to stand over by them and whistled to get everyone's attention.

"Thank you." I said when they all looked at me. "Everyone, these are the guys. It might seem confusing at first, but _please_ don't completely bombard them with questions. We need them alive, thank you very much." I went to stand over by Markus. "This is Markus, Piper's brother, Reyna's boyfriend. So don't even think about it." I eyed Sam, who shrugged while everyone else chuckled. "This is Jason, currently _still_ in a relationship." I can't believe he didn't suck it up and break up with Drew, the coward. "This is Percy, who is single." I paused for a second when Percy cleared his throat. "Still no flirting." I got a few disappointed 'aw's'. "And this is Frank, Reyna's brother. No flirting- none for any of them. Keep it to yourself, hoes. Thank you." I got laughs and disappointed whines. I sat back down in my seat.

"How you hurt me so, Annabeth!" Sam whined, pinning my hair up. "Those two are single, and very attractive. I'm single, and happen to be very-"

"Thirsty?" I volunteered.

"Ah! Annabeth!"

"Truuue!" Piper says from the chair next to mine.

"I'm being ganged up on! Alana, help me out!" He called to the brunette stylist doing Piper's hair. Her violet eyes sparkled as she shrugged.

"You know I don't lie. You're thirsty as hell, Sam." He pouted as we laughed. Suddenly, a chair was pulled up next to me.

"Hey," Percy said. "Mind if I intrude on your conversation?"

"Not at all," Sam said. I looked over at him and hit his hand. "What?"

"I said no!"

"Jeez! Sorry, mother!" I rolled my eyes again, grinning, and plopped back down in my chair. I looked over to see Percy looking at me with a strange glimpse in his eye. I felt a small blush creep onto my face.

"What?"

"Who, me? Nothing."

I snorted. "That's the most unconvincing 'nothing' I think I ever heard."

"Well, then you haven't heard a lot of nothings." He gave me a look that said 'later,' so I dropped it. "So, do we get to watch you strut your stuff, or what?" My eyes grew wide as I heard Sam laugh behind me. Percy was smirking, his arms crossed over his chest. Oh, crap. They were going to watch us. Fantastic. But... WHY, YOU MOTHERFU-

"Depends, if you can learn shut your trap for the next two and a half hours." An 'ooh' sounded behind me as Sam moved from wrapping my hair up in a towel to start prepping my face for make up.

"It takes _two and a half hours_ for you to get ready?" Percy asked incredulously.

"Sometimes it gets up to four or five," Sam said. "I know- I'm their slave."

"Please, girl! You haven't done _our_ hair and makeup for four hours... straight. And besides, you love it!" He sighed.

"Yes, yes I do, dearest." He continues to prep my face as I relaxed in the chair and continued my conversation with Percy. He asked questions like how we were doing, how did it feel to do all of this, how hard it was to put out an EP. I told him about the time when we got up at four thirty in the morning for our first shoot. He said he barely got out of bed in time for school. Sure enough- two and a half hours later- we were done with makeup and hair, which really wasn't all that elaborate. A little bit into the process, our lovely designers came in- along with Silena- and lined out our outfits. Unfortunately, there was only two dressing stalls, so Reyna and Hazel went in first with their stylists.

Hazel came out in a white crop with thin, black straps that ran down the length of the top, and a tight, matching skirt with a little cut out from the bottom in the middle. Her heels were black, four inches, with a strap around the ankle.

"Um, Amber? Can I have this?" Hazel asked as she spun around in front of the mirror on the wall by the dressing room curtain. Amber walked out and rolled her eyes.

"Fine- why not?" Hazel squealed and hugged her, then walked over to me and Piper, who were sitting in the large waiting area.

"Well? Yes or no?"

"Um, yes? You look hot, Peach!" Piper applauded.

"Aw, thanks for acknowledging that!" She flipped her hair and struck a pose.

"Pipe down, Little One," I chuckled. "Wait for everyone to get dressed- _then_ you can brag about looking second best."

"Ugh, fine- wait, _second_ best?" I smirked at her while she pulled a shocked diva face. Sara, the artist who did her makeup, called her over for touch ups. She blew a raspberry at me then trotted off behind Sara, giggling. Piper rolled her eyes just as Reyna and Becca came out of their dressing space. Reyna had on a stunning black halter neck jumpsuit that plunged a bit, and glossy white pumps that made her three and a half inches taller.

"YAS QUEEN!" Hazel shouted from the makeup chair.

"Oh my gosh. Love. It." Piper said.

"Wait." I got up and walked in a circle around her. Her hair was still pinned up. I took it out and her hair fell over her shoulders. Piper squealed and Hazel clapped. "PERFECT! Rey, you look _so_ gorgeous right now. Don't you think, Markus?" I looked over to my friend to see him gaping at Reyna, slack jawed and completely speechless. Suddenly, he rushed up and kissed her, taking her completely by surprise. I jumped away from them.

"I'm going to take that as a yes, then."

"OH MY GOD THAT IS ONE OF THE CUTEST THINGS I THINK I'VE EVER SEEEEEN!" Sam squealed from the vanity where Sara and Hazel were. Piper rolled her eyes and got up.

"As much as I love to see my best friend and my brother get along-" she pushed them part- "I prefer not to watch them make out right in front of me."

"Good," Rita said, holding up and armful of clothing and pointing to us. "Then you two can come on into the dressing stalls." Ruby waved me over, and we took the one on the left. After Ruby shut the curtain, she handed me a few different things to try on. After a few minutes, I had on the outfit I liked the best: a black tube top- which was pretty much only a bra- that showed off my flat, tanned stomach (many thanks to Thalia and Leo for setting us up with that personal trainer. I've never been more proud of myself), and a long, black, flowy skirt that had a long slit up the right side. Unfortunately, the thing I had to wear under my skirt so my underwear didn't show resembled something a lot like a black diaper. My shoes were around three and a half inches, since I was a little taller than the other girls, and white gladiator heels. I turned to Ruby, who smiled and nodded, then I went out to show the girls... and the guys. When I walked out, I was immediately greeted with 'wows' and 'pretty's.' I saw Percy look away from me, focusing on something on his phone with wide eyes. My heart rate quickened. Did I look bad? Did he think that I was trying too hard? Did he _know_ that I was trying too hard? _Wait, Annabeth!_ I scolded myself. _It's not about him- it's about you!_ I pulled up a smile.

"Aw, thanks, guys! You're too kind!" I heard rustling from the other curtain and turned to see Piper looking absolutely gorgeous. She was wearing a strapless, white, lace, high- low dress that started around her mid thigh. Her heels- four inches with a little platform- were lacy and black.

"Oh my God- Pipes!" Reyna gasped. "You look incredible!"

"You think so?" She asked, sounding a little nervous. "I couldn't decide, but I think that I kind of just gave up and hoped this one was good."

"Well, it's gorgeous," Hazel said, joining us. "Let's go do this! Also, Rey," she started, motioning around her mouth. "You might want to go fix your lipstick." Reyna blushed, then scurried over to makeup. Giggling, I turned back over to the guys.

"You know, you don't have to stay. We know that y'all have homework and stuff-"

"Nah, we can just do it here," Frank said, pulling out a binder from the bag by his feet. "Not really a certain place I have to be right now." The other boys agreed and dug through their backpacks.

"Fine by me," Hazel said. "But if you fail something, you know Annabeth and Reyna are gonna get on your asses." They nodded solemnly and started to get to work. Reyna came back with a fresh new pout and Marianne came to get us.

"Hey, girls- sorry that took so long. You know how wedding pictures are... wait, you don't. Okay, follow me. Boys, you're welcome to come and watch." We followed Marianne to a wall covered by a black tarp. She pointed to a white velvet couch. "We're going to try a few different things, but we want you girls to sit on the couch. Plan is: everything black and white except your lips and the title- Introduction." She spread her hands in the air as if it were already plastered to the tarp.

"Ooh, yes!" Piper clapped. "Let's go!" She pranced over to the couch and threw herself on it. Hazel sat down on her legs and Reyna fell on top of Hazel. "OW! Oh, you little shits!" They were all cracking up as I went to the back of the couch and fell on top of them. We were all cracking up and hitting each other with the pillows on the couch. Reyna slammed Hazel with a white pillow and it broke, sending fluffy white feathers in the air around us like confetti. Her shocked face was priceless! I had tears in my eyes when I started to hear the camera click. I looked up to see Marianne taking a bunch of pictures. She looked over the camera.

"Keep going! This'll be great for a video diary."

"Video diary?" Hazel asked with tears trickling down her face. She wiped them off and called, "Someone help me!" Sara jogged over, blue hair bouncing on her pale shoulders.

"You're ridiculous," She said as she started to dab powder over the tear marks on her face.

"Thanks," Reyna said as she got up off the couch to adjust her outfit. She fanned her eyes. "Okay, let's do this. _We_ still have homework and makeup work." _Oh. Yeah._ I got up to fix my skirt and my hair to see Percy holding up his phone. I crossed my arms and drummed my fingers on them. He lowered the camera, a guilty smile on his face. I rolled my eyes and walked behind Marianne to where he was sitting. I saw him quickly type something into his phone and drop it into his lap.

"Really? That's so mature!" He smiled.

"Oops."

"Did you need help?"

"Yeah, I can't figure out how to finish this one..." I sat down beside him on the blue chair and picked up his book and pencil.

"Okay, this one's kind of tricky. First, your math is wrong. You needed to carry the one here, then divide it by seven, since that was your quotient to the last problem. After you get that, you have to multiply it by your total sum of answer 23, and then- are you even listening to me?" I looked over to see him hanging over the arm rest, cackling at something on his phone. He managed to control himself, sat up, and wiped tears from his eyes.

"I'm sorry! It's too funny! Oh my God. Okay, okay- I'm fine." I held my hand out. "What? Why?" I raised an eyebrow. He sighed, "Fine, Mother." _Why did everybody keep calling me that?_ He slapped his phone in my hand.

"Thank you." The video he was watching started to play, and the _I Smell Like Beef_ baby started whining. I felt myself start to grin- it was so stupid, it was funny. I felt the chair shift and something warm press against my back. Percy looked over my shoulder at the screen, his breath tickling my neck. My heart sped up again as the video kept playing. His low chuckle softly sounded in my ear. We both laughed at the Eau de Beef baby as my pulse _ba- boom, ba- boom_ ed in an endless rhythm.

"Annabeth! We need you!" Marianne called from the set. I looked over to Percy, who shrugged. I nervously pulled away from him and gave his phone back.

"Do your work." I pointed a finger at him menacingly. He held his hands up in surrender as I walked back to the set and joined the other girls on the couch, ignoring my stupid heart. I sat down next to Piper and let Marianne adjust me to where she wanted me. Suddenly, an all too familiar song came on.

"How did you already get our EP?" I asked Marianne.

"Thalia. Duh. Just like I got your singles. It's called asking." _God, Marianne._ Her endless sass and sarcasm was as bad as Hazel's. "Okey dokey. Ready? Good." She went behind the camera and started _click, click, clicking_ away.

The photo shoot lasted another forty minutes until we were released to change into sweats. We looked over the pictures until we agreed on the perfect one. We stayed to watch them edit the photos and were super happy when we saw the results. The bold red of our lips and the huge, scripted 'Introduction' was the perfect pop of color for a stunning black and white picture. We walked out of the building at 8:30, tired and starving.

"Someone order Panera," I say when we get into the car. "Please. I'm so hungry."

Reyna nodded and lazily picked up her phone. "Everyone's usual?" We all nodded. "'Kay. Boys, you want anything?"

"If you don't mind," Frank said, lying out on Hazel. Hazel, who was looking out the window of the now moving car, absentmindedly started brushing her fingers through his hair. _What happened between them?_ I wondered. _Whatever it is... it's freaking adorable._ They all gave her their orders, and from then on it was focusing on homework. It only took twenty minutes to get back to the penthouse, and five more minutes for the Panera to get there. We waited for our food in the lobby, paid the guy, then headed upstairs. The boys were speechless and slack jawed when they walked out of the elevator. The girls and I dragged ourselves to the dining room and basically inhaled our dinner. I set out the guys meals and tried not to fall asleep in my takeout box.

"There is no way I'm going to be able to finish my homework tonight- I'm way too exhausted. I can finish tomorrow afternoon and during study hall. I just- I can't. I'm going to go pass out now. Night." I pulled myself out of my seat, threw away my trash, and waved at all of them. I was about to head upstairs when I remembered something. I shuffled back into the dining room.

"Do you need George to take you back home?" I asked the guys. "Or do you want to stay here? Or what do you want to do?" They all looked at each other.

"I mean," Jason started. I almost forgot he was with us, he was so silent. Thalia had left early because of a meeting, and he got really quiet after she left. "My parents aren't really going to care. If Markus' house is close, then we can grab clothes from there tomorrow." The others nodded.

"Pipes, how far from the house?" Markus asked.

"It'll be about thirty minutes in the morning," she said. "Which means it'll take about an hour plus some to get to school. Which means that you won't be able to sleep in until last minute." Percy and Markus groaned, but we ultimately agreed that they would crash here tonight.

We got them settled into the two guest rooms downstairs at the end of the hall, which again they were completely breath taken by. They were simple, white and clean with a few dark brown accents, but it didn't really matter once they kicked off their shoes and slipped under the sheets. I couldn't help but giggle- they looked like third graders at their first 'big boy' sleepover, all tucked in chin deep in their blankets and staring at us as we turned off the lights.

"Y'all okay?" Piper asked Percy and Markus, who roomed together so Frank or Jason, who has always seen all of us (three of us) as little sisters, wouldn't grill Markus about dating Reyna. We all knew Percy would go easiest on him.

"Yep." Percy gave us a thumbs up and Markus nodded vigorously.

"Alright," I said, starting to close the door. "Night."

"Night."

"Night."

After I closed the door, I crawled up the stairs and into my bed in my sweats. I couldn't force myself to stay awake any longer, and I wanted sleep to smother today's torture. No matter what went wrong, good rest could fix it. So I let the heaviness drown my conscious and cloud my mind and pull me into a deep slumber I never want to be pulled out of again.

* * *

When I say I never want to be woken up, I kind of really mean it. So it's not my fault if someone winds up with a few cat scratches in the morning trying to wake me up. It's just a habit... one that I don't care to break. But once I heard a sharp yelp of pain, I knew that I let my want for sleep in the way of paying attention to what I was doing.

"Holy shit! I'm so sorry... Percy?" I was suddenly aware that I was barely dressed- sometime in the middle of the night I changed into a loose tank top and pajama shorts because I got uncomfortable. I pulled the duvet cover over my chest. "What are you doing in here?"

"The other girls sent me in here to wake you up. For reasons I assume I now know." He put his hand up to his mouth as I groaned and rubbed my eyes with the palms of my hands. He was actually bleeding.

"I'm sorry. Wait, what time is it?"

He looked at the watch on his wrist and backed up a few steps. I rolled my eyes; honestly, I couldn't have slept in that long.

"7:15, so you have, like, forty minutes." Or maybe I could have.

"WHAT?!" I stumbled into my closet, throwing things on the floor while trying to pinch myself awake. I heard footsteps thumping up the stairs and running into my room.

"Thank you, you living angel." Hazel said as she handed Percy a twenty dollar bill.

"Yeah, no shit. You owe me."

"I just paid you!" I came out of the closet to see the girls fully dressed and starting on my room. I leaned against the door frame and crossed my arms.

"You paid him?" I asked in a flat tone. Hazel shrugged in her gold cropped jersey with huge black printed 00's on it. She was also wearing black ripped jeans, gold wedged trainers, and a gold baseball cap that had 'BOSS' printed on it in bold letters. Her silky straight hair (which probably took, like, two hours to straighten) was pulled through her hat in a ponytail, and she had a light face of makeup on.

"Let's go!" She grabbed my arm and led me into my closet after waving to Percy.

"Thanks, Perce!" Piper called after him, her many bracelets jingling as she waved.

"Mmm- hmm." He shut the door behind him and made his way downstairs. I turned to Hazel.

"Are you serious?"

"Completely," She said. "We argued about it for fifteen minutes until Percy said we were stupid and he'd wake you up. I said I'd bet him that he couldn't. And he said 'watch me.' So he did, and since I knew he would, we waited until we got a signal you were up. Your 'what' was a little excessive, though." I rolled my eyes. "Go to Reyna! You're done in here." She pushed me out and towards the bathroom where Reyna had finished lining out makeup and hair products.

"Thank you, Piper," I said as she set the last pillow on my somehow already made bed.

"No problem," she said, then followed me into the restroom. Her baggy, dark red crop added a twinge of violet in her eyes, and her white jeans stood out beautifully against her tan skin. White strappy wedges adorned her feet. She brushed her straight hair out of her face, away from her bold lashes and dark red lips. "Hurry, Beth- go!"

"Sit," Reyna commanded, and I tiredly plopped down in the plush seat. She had on her high waisted black skinny jeans and blue suede pumps, and the long bell sleeves on her flowy floral shirt kept tickling my face as she did my makeup. Hazel came in shortly after with a pretty rose colored, off the shoulder sweater with long sleeves that flared on the bottom and would reach past my fingers. She also brought in a pair light wash jeans and velvet booties that were the same color as the sweater.

"Yeah?" She asked. I peeked.

"Yeah." Hazel hung them up on the towel rack and moved to my hair, which Piper had already started to straighten. They finished getting me ready in thirty minutes, with my hair now reaching my waist, a neutral smokey eye, and a soft pink lip. "Perfect! Thank you guys!"

"Yeah, we know," Piper said, putting up the straight iron. "What would you do without us?"

"Nothing," Reyna answered for me as she sprayed Viva la Juicy on my wrists. "Come on. George said he'd be here in a few minutes."

"Is he bringing food? I'm so hungry right now." Hazel whined. Reyna nodded and she did a little happy dance. I looked in the full length mirror in my closet and tucked the front of my sweater into my jeans.

"Okay, I'm good. Let's go!" We headed downstairs and met the lovely George, who brought us food (yay!) and took us to school (boo!). When we walked in, even more people crowded around us than yesterday, asking for selfies and asking why we were there. We had to explain to some people that we've been at Goode for three years... yeah, they got really embarrassed. Truthfully, the day went by easily. The shitheads- sorry, _populars-_ skipped, apparently, because Drew was hurt. Reyna claimed that she didn't actually hit her that hard. I didn't care. I was just glad they were gone.

The rest of the year was pretty uneventful. Making up all that extra work was just another pain in the ass, but luckily, we got it done in a good amount of time. We got to know Calypso a lot better. We had that sleepover at the penthouse, and she was so sweet. We were all shocked how easily the populars were able to manipulate her. Spring break was awesome. We all went to Percy's mom's beach house in Montauk over the weekend, and then we spoiled the boys and Calypso and took them down to Piper's dad's place in L.A for the week. Just a bunch of fortunate kids doing a bunch of fortunate things. I know, we sound like fucking brats.

Unfortunately, the Queen Bitches showed up again. Luckily, they weren't as terrible on us... as in they didn't hit us as hard. Which was an improvement! I was so happy to be done with them after this year. Also, whatever weird thing that was going on between Piper and Jason had calmed down. We were all back to being super close... speaking of. Mareyna was still going strong. It was hard to separate those two, sometimes to the point where it almost got embarrassing.

Oh, our EP! It came out exactly when we wanted it to, and the release party was amazing. Alicia was able to make it for a little while and give a short toast. Apollo said how proud he was of us. The boys loved all of the food, and we couldn't be happier. The EP landed number three on the iTunes chart! I couldn't be happier or more proud of our success!

About a month before the end of the year- so I guess, like, May first- we were all called into the office. I got super nervous; I had never been into the actual principal's office in my life. Sure, I've helped the secretary and the councilors with a few things, but I've never been asked to go down to the _principal's_ office. Once we walked into the cold and silent room, Mrs. Laird, the vice principal, led us into the huge office of Mr. Chiron. Our principal was sitting behind a large wooden desk in his black wheelchair. He smiled as we walked in.

"Good morning, ladies! Please, have a seat." I nervously sat down in a leather chair, Piper cramming in next to me. I grabbed her hand and she gave me a small comforting squeeze.

"Good morning, Mr. Chiron," Reyna stammered. "Um, are we, uh, in trouble, sir?"

"No, not at all. The school board and I merely have a suggestion." His expression turned more serious. "Now, we all understand your ordeal, and we don't expect you to give up what you're doing. You girls have a real talent, and the staff and I support you one hundred percent." He chuckled. "Just the other day, I walked into the locker room to meet with Coach Samson and saw him-" Mrs. Laird cleared her out throat, obviously prompting him to get back on task.

"What? Oh, yes. Of course. Now, like I said, we want what's best for you four. That's why we've come up with an alternate plan for your high school careers." Oh, no. This is the part when he tells us we're getting expelled. But what did we do? Was it that stupid argument with Hazel and Miranda last week? Because Hazel did the right thing by walking away... after calling her a twat. But it was all fine in the end!

I took in a deep breath. "Are we getting expelled, sir?" I could sense everyone holding their breath. Mr. Chiron pulled a confused face. Suddenly, he barked a laugh which made us jump.

"No! No, no, no! Why would you get that idea? But it is just as serious, and we expect you ladies to _take_ it seriously." My mind was racing. If we weren't getting expelled, that what was happening? We all leaned forward in our seats.

"We will, Mr. Chiron. Trust us on that," Piper promised him. Another grin cracked on his face.

"Well, then. We know that this is your last year of high school, even though you wouldn't be graduating since you're juniors. So, do you girls mind graduating _this_ year?"

Oh. My. God. I'M ACTUALLY GOING TO GRADUATE! My greatest concern when we agreed that this would be our last year of school was that I wouldn't be able to graduate. And now, everything I've worked for in school is going to pay off! My eyes welled with tears and my hand flew up to my mouth. I had to many things to say, and also not enough. I wound up nodding my head. "That wound be amazing. Thank you- so, so much." I heard Reyna sniffling and saw a few tears trailing down Piper's face. Hazel was smiling so wide I thought that she couldn't move her face. I turned and hugged Piper, who hugged me back and squeezed me.

Hazel whooped. "We're actually graduating!" We all laughed.

Mr. Chiron chuckled. "On a few conditions. I know that you have all the credits you need and more to graduate, and most of the classes you're taking are already senior level. We just need to up that to all of the classes. Piper and Hazel, if you think you can catch up on History and Science by the end of the year..."

"Definitely," Piper promised.

"Yeah, of course," Hazel agreed.

"Good. And Hazel, again- your Math class?" Hazel hated math. Honestly, who doesn't? But Hazel really struggled. Of course, we help her, but she doesn't like speaking to teachers in front of the class and she refuses to get tutored by anyone other than us. Still, that determined gleam in her eye told me how bad she wanted to graduate.

"I'll do it. Whatever it takes." I squeezed her hand.

"Well then." He shuffled a few papers on his desk. "I'd start getting measured for your cap and gown, if I were you."

After endlessly thanking him and promising him our success, we sprinted out of the office to find the boys and Callie waiting for us.

"What happened?" Jason asked. "What did he-" We screamed and tackled them with hugs. Reyna jumped on Markus and kissed him. Hazel hopped on Percy's back and started messing up his hair. Piper and I spun around with Frank, Jason and Calypso.

"Either you're really happy about getting expelled or something else happened," Percy said, trying to knock Hazel off of him. "And we still have no clue. Care to explain?"

Piper nodded and wiped tears from her face. "I would, if Reyna and Markus would stop trying to eat each other's faces!" They look towards us (the dark lipstick marks on Markus' face were hilarious) and Markus shyly put Reyna down. Reyna glowed, I'm guessing from both happiness and embarrassment.

"Annabeth?" Pipes turned to me. I sobbed once, completely overjoyed.

"Guys. We're graduating this year!" They all hugged us and complemented us, and I couldn't have been happier. Graduation... I had finally made it. One part of my life goal was done. Now, to conquer the next. And the next, and the next after that. I'm so ready to face whatever gets thrown at me. Come on, world. Bring it the fuck on.

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 **Tell me what you thought in a review, or suggest something you think should be added in the story. Byeeeee!**

 _ **~TheKeeperGeek**_


	12. Twelve- A Moment to Remember

**GUYS IT'S OFFICIALLY OUR ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF POSSIBLY NOTICED! Honestly, it feels like it's been longer. BUT HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO POSSIBLY NOTICED! And yes, I waited until the exact date to post this chapter. **

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**_SHOUT OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUTTTSS!:_**

A special thank you to **CrazyGrace2** for following _Possibly Noticed_! You're awesome, girl! Another huge thanks to **Annabeth and Percy Jackson** for following and favoriting _Possibly Noticed._

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 **Disclaimer:**

I don't own PJO/HoO. But it's fine! *sniffles* *looks off into distance* I'm fine.

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 ** _Piper's P.O.V_**

"Are you sure I'm doing this right?" I asked, extremely perplexed. Even though we had successfully released our first album, Thalia, Leo and Apollo still thought we lacked confidence. Honestly, in our defense, it is _really_ hard to perform well when you're not used to it. Jimmy Fallon wasn't really an exception, even though we were only performing one song and there wasn't that many people there. Thalia, being a strong feminist, had asked some of her celeb BFF's and asked how they gained their confidence in the most low key way possible. Some suggested just privately performing in front of the person or people that intimidate you the most. We decided against that. Some said it just came naturally to them. We envied them. Some suggested the old 'picture everyone in their underwear.' It didn't work for anyone except Reyna... for reasons I refuse to repeat. So we looked up some videos on YouTube and somehow agreed on one thing that was said to help you feel sexy in your own skin and help you be more confident in yourself: pole dancing!

Yaaay.

"Whee!" Hazel giggled as she slid down her pole. Easy for her to say- she used to be a lieutenant on the dance team. I just felt awkward. I mean, I was pretty flexible and that blessed personal trainer that Thalia and Leo set us up with helped me a lot with upper body strength. So I could hold myself up on the pole, but I didn't feel like I was doing the turns right. I tried to tell myself that it was fine, that I could let loose. The stripper kept telling me that, too.

"It's okay, Piper," Aurora assured me. "You're doing fine! It's a safe environment: you don't have to feel like anyone's watching you." Which, of course, made me feel like a thousand people were watching me. I readjusted my sports bra and Adidas shorts and grabbed the silver pole. _Okay, Pipes. You can do this. You've been in worse situations._ I took a deep breath in, let it out, and jumped on the pole. I started climbing to the top how she showed me.

"Good. Great job, Piper! You're almost there. You got this!" My hands stopped a few inches from the very top, _inhale, exhale,_ and I went into a fireman, then to a butterfly, then a one- legged firefly into a backspin the rest of the way down. "YAAAS PIPER! SLAY QUEEN- YOU DID IT!" I smiled and stood up.

"Oh God," I panted. "That was hard." I gave Aurora (who, yes, looked exactly like Sleeping Beauty with green eyes) a high five, and Hazel a hug.

"Girl, you looked so good up there!" She exclaimed. Reyna came up and gave me a hug as well.

"Thanks," I said. "I actually _feel_ so gorgeous up there; it's literally like I'm in control of everything. I feel so much more confident, thanks to you, Aurora. Thank you so much!" I gave her a hug.

"Alright, well I want to try my routine again!" Annabeth exclaimed, which was still a little startling to hear. When we first started this process, she was very conservative since she was raised to be against this kind of dancing. Yes, she had gotten into a little shorter clothing, but she still had her morals. Annabeth hardly even wanted to touch the poles a two weeks ago. Now, she really let her inner beauty shine! She looked so confident, and I even noticed that she was a little more talkative and flirtier than before. I think all of our self-esteem levels have risen. We all acted like we knew who we were a little bit more. And honestly, I didn't mind that a pole helped us find that out. Annabeth started her routine, spinning around the pole and making faces at us.

"Ooh, yes, girl. Get it!" Reyna called as our new little monkey started climbing.

"Oh my God. Annabeth, your ass looks so good right now," Aurora called up. I shook my head- only Aurora. Annabeth flipped herself towards us and popped her head. "Aw, yeah. You go girl!" She finished her routine and bit her lip. Hazel squealed and ran over to her.

"You _slayed,_ woman!" Annabeth laughed and squeezed us all.

"Okay!" Aurora made a shooing motion with her fingers. "You can freestyle for a few minutes." I trotted over to my pole.

"Play 'Love So Soft!'" Reyna called. "We need some Kelly Clarkson in here."

"Oh, yes! Let's do it!" Annabeth agreed. As weird as it was to say it, this pole dancing class had truly made all of us closer. We were allowed to express ourselves through a dance that made us feel like we are in control and we are captivating. And all that other awesome shit Aurora says before we warm up every day.

"Wait," Hazel asked our instructor. "I had recently got a little over split in my middle spits..." her eyes widened. "Do you think you could teach me that cool pole trick where you hold yourself in the splits?" She thought about it for a second.

"I can teach you," she started. Hazel squealed. "But we might not be able to get it all in today."

"Fine." Hazel agreed. "Totally fine. I'm so excited." Aurora walked over to a pole and swung herself up on it as Peach slid into her splits to stretch.

"Girls, pay attention if you want. Alright, Hazel. Here we go. The first thing you do is try to pull your right leg around your..." I kind of droned them out, letting the song take complete liberty over me. I closed my eyes and saw the colors of the song, which is something that Apollo taught us when we first started writing with him. I felt myself slide onto the floor, roll back up, and start swinging on the pole again. I opened my eyes to see Peaches horizontal on a silver pole, spinning around and laughing.

"YES PEACH!" I yelled as I walked down the pole. I heard voices outside and I assumed it was the next class. Wanting to get one last good run in, I climbed to the top of the pole.

As I got to the top and started spinning, I heard someone outside of the room say, "So I guess she meant they were dancing."

"That's kinda hot," another one said.

"Shit, man, when are you not thinking about- oh my God." I looked over to the curtains that were used for doors and saw two figures. As I kept turning, I spotted them **(a/n: if u don't dance, spotting is a term used when ur turning. u have to keep ur eyes focused on one thing. ur head whips around while u turn so ur eyes can stay targeted on that 1 focal point. BAM KNOWLEDGE)** and got confused about the boys staring at us. One had dark hair and sea green eyes, and the other-

"Mm?!" I muffled a yell. I lost my focus and slid down the pole, the friction between it and my skin setting the insides of my legs on fire. I caught myself last second before I hit the ground in a ballerina, pulling myself out of a crouch. I could feel my face heating up- this definitely wasn't the place where I'd want to meet up with my best friends.

"Uh, heh," I nervously chuckled. "Hi?" I heard a gasp and a sound that was somewhat like... well, very noisily sliding down a metal rod, and Annabeth appeared at my side.

"Uh, hey... guys... oh my God this is like, super awkward." Reyna had cautiously stepped away from her pole and started to walk towards us. The only people who didn't seem to care were Aurora and Hazel, both of which were spinning around on the same pole.

"Oh, hey guys!" Hazel called. "What's up?" Jason and Percy were just gaping at us with their mouths slightly open. My stomach erupted with butterflies as Jason's mouth snapped shut and he started stuttering.

"Uh, we, uh... uh, came to, uh-"

"Holy shit," Percy choked out. "I think that's all I have to say." A smirk worked its way onto his face. "Also, I'm guessing neither of you want me to tell Markus about this..." he pointed to me and Reyna.

"If you tell him, I will personally pulverize you," I told him.

"I'd help you with that," Reyna agreed, daring him with her eyes. He backed up a step.

"Okay, okay. No need for abuse. We just came to collect you lovely ladies to get measured for your caps and gowns." Annabeth squealed and sparks went off in my mind. I still couldn't believe that we were given the amazing opportunity to _graduate_! Even though it was much more important to Reyna and Annabeth, it still meant a lot for me. My whole life was handed to me from birth. I didn't have to go to school if I didn't want to- my parents could've found any amazing tutor to teach me. My parents have enough money for me, my children, and probably my grandchildren to live a luxurious life. But I felt like if I had decided to live the way my other sisters and brother lived (I have two sisters and two brothers, in case you didn't know), then I wasn't really living. I wanted a normal life, a life that was so much different than the one pre-made for me. Graduating was one of the many 'normal' things that would make me feel accomplished.

"Yay!" Hazel said as she slid off her pole. "Give us a second to get changed. Thank you so much, Aurora!"

"No problem, ladies. See you on Monday?"

"Of course!" Reyna said, then we scurried to the dressing room. I slipped on my black, cut off overalls over my off the shoulder black and white striped one piece. I slipped on my white converse, put my hair up in a high ponytail, and reapplied my light red lipstick. I skipped out of the changing room with my black backpack to join Percy and Jason, who were waiting in the lobby because, as Annabeth later told me, they were 'scared for their lives around the stripper.' It burned like hell when I snorted my lemonade out of my nose.

"Okay. Onward!" I marched out the door after saying a thank you to Jennifer, the desk attendant. We hopped in Percy's Prius and rode to a quaint little shop in a strip mall. As I pushed open the door, a tiny bell jingled.

"Welcome! Oh, my- there's a bunch of you!" An older lady rounded the corner, wrapping a pink shawl tighter around her shoulders. "Come in! Come in!" She motioned to a large circle platform and five chairs against a yellow wall. She turned back to us and stuck out her hand. "My name's Helena, nice to meet you all." Hazel shook her hand.

"Hi, Miss Helena. I'm-"

She gasped. "Oh my goodness! You're the girls on the playlist my granddaughters listen to! Wow, oh this is fantastic! Would you dears mind waiting a moment? My girls are in the back and I'm sure they'd love to meet you!" I looked to my friends. The girls eagerly nodded and the boys made a little 'go do your thing' gesture.

"Of course!" Annabeth exclaimed. "We'd love to meet them!"

"Wonderful! Wait just a minute; I'll go get them!" She went around to them back, muttering to herself how excited her little girls are going to be. I heard her in the back calling to her granddaughters.

"Hi, Nanaaa!" One of them called. She sounded about six.

"Hello, Abigail, darling. Where is your sister? I have a surprise for her birthday, but I thought that you'd want to share it."

"Okay, I'll get her. Diaaanaaa!" I heard little footsteps pound out of the room and back in in a few seconds.

"Yes, Nana?"

"Hello, sweet girl! I have a little surprise for you both. Are you ready?"

"Yeah, but why do I have to share a birthday present with _her?_ It's _my_ birthday!" Helena just laughed.

"But this is more of a... spur-of-the-moment present. Ready?"

"Yeah!" Both of them giggled.

"Shut your eyes. No peeking, Abby!"

"Okay, Nana!" She led them out to the little lobby we were in with their eyes squeezed super tight and huge smiles that adorned their faces. The youngest, Abigail, had her brown hair braided in pigtails, and her bright smile shone while she wore her Princess Belle costume. To her left was Diana, I supposed, and her long hair was braided down her back as her pink birthday sash sparked under the lights. My smile grew even wider.

"Hi, girlies!" They gasped and their eyes flew open. "My name's Piper, and-"

"-Annabeth and Hazel and Reyna!" Diana finished. "Oh my gosh it's CHANGING WAYS!" Both the girls screamed and jumped up and down. I heard a small 'ooh' from Reyna and saw a small grimace, but I could tell that she really didn't mind.

"Oh my gosh!" Little Abby squealed. "What are you doing in Nana's store?" My heart wanted to explode from cuteness overload. I couldn't help bending over and balancing my hands on my knees.

"We're graduating this year! And we need our caps and our gowns so we can match the rest of our friends."

"I thought you would go to, like, a really fancy clothes place, though." I looked over at their grandmother, but she looked anything but offended.

"Well," Reyna started. "I think this is plenty fancy enough. It looks just like the other stores we go to."

Diana gasped. "Really?"

"Really," Rey nodded. "But we need to hurry- we got a lot of other things to do this super awesome Saturday! Can you ladies help us?"

"Yes, yes, yes!" Abigail said. I heard Hazel giggle as she walked over to the huge circle. The little girls dashed to the back and returned a second later balancing a large box titled 'Graduation.' Just then, a black Corvette pulled up and Markus and Frank walked in. Helena's granddaughters ran to them and pulled them towards us.

"Oh my gosh oh my gosh! Guys, look! It's Changing Ways! How awesome is that?" Markus looked up at me, questioning. I shrugged. He smiled and bent down to Diana's level.

"What if I told you that I know all of them?" They gasped. They were really breathtaken by this experience, which made my heart swell.

"Really?" Diana asked, unbelievingly.

"Yep." He pointed to me. "That's my little sister. And that's my girlfriend." Reyna smiled. "And I know those other two so well their like sisters." They turned to us.

"It's true," Rey nodded. "And that's my brother."

"And Hazel's- OW! Shhhh... oot. Shoot." Annabeth caught herself. She rolled her ankle that Hazel slammed her foot down in and grimaced.

"Alrighty, we should hurry!" I could tell Hazel was forcing a smile. She shot Annabeth a look that said 'I will kill you later,' and walked up to the platform.

The whole process of getting us measured and fitted took about thirty minutes. It was so much fun hanging out with the little girls and getting to know them.

"What's your favorite song off the EP?" I asked them.

"Oh, that's hard." Abby thought a second. "I think I like Gold the best. Oh, but Word Up is good, too. Wait... do I like Wings?" Her older sister rolled her eyes as we giggled.

"I like everything!" Diana exclaimed.

"Why are those your favorite?" Hazel asked. "What do they mean for you?"

"Well, I always like to listen to Little Me because some people at our school make fun of us because we don't have a mommy." Abigail said. My breath caught; they didn't have a mom? What had happened? "Little Me makes me feel better because I can be anything I want to be!"

I think that's what did it for me. I felt my eyes well up with tears. We made a little girl feel like she can't be touched by the haters because our song made her happy, and our song gave her joy and confidence. Annabeth cleared her throat as I wiped away the tears that threatened to fall.

 _She lives in the shadow of a lonely girl. Voice so quiet you can't hear a word. Always talking but she can't be he-a-rd._

Abby and Diana's eyes widened and they hugged each other.

 _You can see it there if you catch her eye. Know she's brave but it's trapped inside. Scared to talk, but she don't know why-y-y._

As we continued with the song, they joined us and swayed together.

 _Whoa, Little Me._

I ended the song with a huge smile on my face. "Good job, guys!"

"Best. Birthday. EVER!" Diana squealed. We all laughed.

"Alright, ladies and gentlemen," she said as she finished Frank's measurements. "You're good to go! You can come pick them up in a week!"

"Thank you, Miss Helena!" Hazel beamed. We chorused a 'thank you' after her.

"No problem. It's my pleasure! Oh, there are some cookies in the back! Diana, Abby, would you go get them?" They sprinted out of the room and returned a few minutes later with the cookies, a sharpie, and two pieces of paper.

"Can you sign this for us?" Abigail asked us with wide eyes.

"Of course!" Reyna picked up the sharpie and scribbled her name across it with a heart. Diana handed me the tuberware dish of cookies. I grabbed one and took a bite. It was soft and warm, surprising me. The chocolate chips exploded on my mouth. I finished my cookie before I realized that it was gone.

"That good, huh?" Annabeth asked as she took a bite of hers. Her eyes widened. "Oh ma goh tha's so goo." I nodded seriously as she passed me the papers.

"I'm glad you like them," Miss Helena said with a smile on her face. "You can take those, if you want. I have another batch in the back and enough tuberware to last a month."

"Are you sure?" Hazel asked, already pulling the cookies closer to her. When the older woman nodded, she grabbed two more with a crazy grin before handing them to Reyna. I finished my second signature with a flick of my wrist and them handed back to Diana.

"Thanks, girlies, but we gotta go."

"It's okay! We'll see you at your concert!" Abby said, hugging her copy to her chest. _Damn,_ I thought. _I didn't think about the shows..._

"You sure will!" Annabeth assured her. "We have another birthday present for you, Diana, but it won't get here for a little while." The little girl's eyes widened and she nodded slowly while I thought, _Uh, what?_

"Thank you again," Reyna said, finishing her snack. "And thanks for the cookies!"

"Of course, ladies. Anytime. Have a good day!"

"You, too!" I said back. We walked out the door, the tiny bell jingling. As we walked towards the car, Annabeth turned around and took a picture of the building.

"What was that for?" Percy asked.

"Just something." He looked at her strangely, but turned around to unlock his car. We got in and headed to Chik-fil-a for meals for them and all their French fries for me. Being a vegetarian has its merits. Once we got back to the penthouse, I asked Annabeth what she was planning.

"I wanted to get them tickets to one of our shows." As much as I loved those girls, I knew it would be hard to get Apollo on the same track. I started to protest. "I know, I know. I'll ask Leo and Thalia first. I think that they could convince Apollo. And obviously we could've just let them pay and stuff, but it seemed like they lived in that little shop. And Pipes," she lowered her voice, "they don't have a mother. I don't know how long ago she left, but it's obvious they don't have much of a maternal influence. I mean, yes, Helena, but that's their _grandmother._ I don't think she'd really take them to a concert unless she had been presented the opportunity, you know? I want this for the girls!"

I knew exactly what she meant. Even though she wasn't really around, I still had a mom. I still had a little bit of a security blanket with her in case I needed her guidance. These poor little girls didn't have that, and her made fun of for that. The reality that our music made them feel powerful and like they could face harassment with a smile... was unreal.

"Sounds awesome, Wise Girl." I hooked an arm around her shoulders. A week later, Apollo agreed. The only condition was the family couldn't tell anyone how they really got the tickets, because then we'd probably have people begging us for free tickets. As okay as I was with that, I knew that it wasn't how this industry worked. Another week later, we all went down to get our caps and gowns. Frank, Annabeth and Reyna wore orange with a white mantle to present that they were in the top ten percent (and also NHS, but you know. No big deal...). The rest of us had blue gowns, Jason, Hazel and I with a white mantle. Helena took lots of pictures and gave us more cookies. I freaking loved that woman.

By then it was nearing the end of May. Finals were coming up, and almost every student was stressing, especially poor Hazel. She was so nervous for her math that I genuinely thought she was going to pass out. The next week was Doomsday x5. Exam... after exam... after exam... and it was miserable. At the end of the week, I remember all of us locking ourselves in the penthouse and studying until eleven at night. We wore sweatpants all week- that's how bad it was. Reyna didn't even wear eyeliner. It was seriously _that_ bad.

The exciting thing was that we did it. We finished and we were so ready to ditch that hellhole. Our U.S tour started a week after we graduated, and we couldn't be more excited and nervous. The thought that people were staring at us and critizing us and expecting us to do our best- but you know, no pressure. Speaking of no pressure...

"WHAT?!" We yelled.

"Wait, wait, wait." Reyna made a time out sign. "In front of the whole _school?!_ "

"That's kinda what performing at the graduation ceremony means." Leo said, shrugging. "I mean, you don't have to. But it _would_ be an awesome opportunity to get you ladies an even wider audience. Again, it was Chiron's idea- it's not final. If you can't handle it..." he knew exactly how to push our buttons.

Hazel crossed her arms. "Oh, we can handle it. I'm trying to think of the downside of this. What's the catch?"

"The catch is that your probably going have to hear a thousand parental complements. Seriously, you think we're that cruel?"

"Yeah." Annabeth answered. "Annoyingly cruel."

"Well, dearest Annie," Leo said, moonwalking over to us and wrapping an arm around us. "Annoying is my specialty."

She picked his arm off her shoulders. "No need to remind us. And your pranks are literally the _worst!_ I'm tired of the projection of spiders on my wall."

"We're tired of it, too." Hazel answered. "It's miserable waking up to a screaming Annabeth. And it's also miserable eating your tacos. Really? Every single time you have to put in a rubber snake?" I flashed back to the time Reyna almost swallowed the tiny thing. It was disgusting.

"Yeah, and your 'prank calls?' I was literally about to call CPS when you called telling us Abby and Diana had ran away to find us."

"Okay, you got me back on that one," he defended himself. He rubbed his shoulder where I had punched him. "Who knew you could hit so damn hard?"

"Us." Reyna stated blandly. "And she doesn't hit people. She was that pissed."

"On the other hand," I started. "It was hilarious when you prank called Thalia. She was so scared I actually felt bad." Poor Thalia. We had called her and Leo pretended to be a die-hard Changing Ways fan. He demanded free tickets to the show in Brooklyn and autographs from all of us, or he would bring a gun to Apollo's studio and get his items himself. I was pretty sure she pissed her pants.

"Back to the question, because I have to tell Apollo in, like-" he checked his wrist that, in fact, did not have a watch on it, "-now. So?" We agreed, which meant we had to find three songs to sing after the ceremony. In a few days, we were ready to rock... again.

The ceremony was exactly what I expected it to be: the school auditorium was decorated in the light blue and sliver of our school colors. Spiral streamers draped from the ceiling and across the chairs, and the huge screen above the stage glowed with the words _Welcome, Graduates!_ detailed in blue.

The student body walked in single file and proudly, the girls sitting on the left side of the auditorium and the boys on the right, just as we had strictly practiced. They played the school anthem as we walked in until every student got to their seat. Unfortunately, I didn't have a friend to sit by me, so no one was by me to steady my trembling hands.

We said the pledge of allegiance and sat down, waiting for the ceremony to begin.

Mr. Chiron walked up the stage and introduced himself and the faculty, and thanked everyone who had helped make this graduation ceremony possible, ex cetra. Afterwards, the student council said a few words, which means that they gave a bunch of speeches about how excited they are for the future, how they know that we'll all go on to do amazing things, blah blah blah.

Eventually, they started calling us up in alphabetical order, and I was itching to get up there. I knew I would be the sixth of us to get called, but I could hardly contain the excitement coursing through my veins. I had curled my hair to wavy perfection and done really pretty, soft and subtle makeup. I bobby pinned my cap to my head so there wasn't a chance of it falling off. I kept smoothing the wrinkles off my gown and wrinkling it back up again. I had to anxiously sit on my hands to keep from fidgeting. I caught a glimpse of Hazel, sitting a row in front of me. She sucked in a breath through her teeth, causing me to nervously giggle and do the same.

The service slowly trudged on. Soon enough, they got to the M's. The girl next to me stood, and my heart rate doubled.

"Markus McLean." I saw my brother stand and walk towards the stage.

"Piper McLean." I inhaled, stood up, exhaled, and made my way to the platform. Right, left, right, left. Huge smile, shake her hand, grab the beautiful diploma, keep your shoulders back, and walk off the stage with your head held high and and twinkle in your eye. Sit back down, and wait forever for the ceremony to finish. And your done. You've officially graduated.

I started undoing the bobby pins in my hair as Mr. Chiron finished his speech. "Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the beginning of your life. As adults." He smiled wide, his eyes shining. "Congratulations, Senior Class. You've all earned it. Now throw your damn caps in the air!" Everyone cheered and tossed their caps to the sky, quickly grabbing them and hugging everyone. I grabbed Hazel's hand as we ran back to find Reyna and Calypso. They met us halfway and Annabeth flew towards us with tears in her eyes.

"OH MY GOD!" We all group hugged, shedding tears as the boys came up and joined our circle.

"We're officially done here, bitches!" Jason yelled as we all laughed and smiled and got drunk in the moment. Everyone made their way to the courtyard, where we were supposed to perform. Hazel's parents came up to us and congratulated us, handing us all a bouquet of flowers.

"Well _done_ ladies!" Pluto said, his grin enormous. "We couldn't be more proud. Of all of you!"

"Thanks, Daddy!" Hazel tackled him in a hug. "We gotta go. They said they'd be here with the bus, right?" We nodded and ran off to find our girls. In the front of the parking lot sat a huge, black tour bus. We sprinted towards it and the doors automatically opened.

"We're graduates!" Reyna screamed, and we had a quick congrats sesh before we scurried to get changed. We finished in seven minutes flat and we scurried our the bus and back into the courtyard.

I heard Reyna struggling and laughing, running barefoot across the street in her long yellow high- low dress, her white sandals slung over her shoulder. Annabeth was huffing in a strapless white romper that had a long half skirt in the back, barely avoiding tripping in the light pink flats she had on. I had to hold up my long, flowy, white floral skirt and try to run in pink flowered sandals back towards the stage. My pink, off the shoulder, ruffly crop top was rising up on me, but we managed to make it back to the stage in the middle of the huge area. Hazel, who was wearing a short, silky green dress and white sandals, started to walk towards the stage.

Everything seems like it's going well, right?

Haha. You're funny. See, that's where you're wrong.

You should've known by now how fantastic our luck is, and how fast something good for us can turn into something so shitty it ruins our lives.

I mean, we did tell you about the popular shitheads, didn't we?

* * *

 **Oh my God thaaanks for, like, readaaang. You're, like, the baaaaaaaast! (Or literally _Bast_ , shout out to all my magicians...) **

**Also, thought you should know, I literally waited until, like, 11:50 to post this b/c I'm shit and I'm literally the _worst_ about procrastinating. So, happy anniversary, very very late.**

 _ **~ TheKeeperGeek**_


	13. Thirteen- The Rest of Your Lives

For those of you that saw that the story was completed, sorry 'bout that. It's not completed yet. Oops.

* * *

SHOUT OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUTTTSS!:

A massive shout out to **SelfieAddict** and **bayna26** for favoriting moi! And another to **procrastinatingmushroomfangirl** and **Bowser22** for following and favoriting _Possibly Noticed! _ Thanks a bunch!

* * *

 **Disclaimer :**

I think I finally found out what disclaimers are supposed to do...

I think they're supposed to painfully remind you of what you don't have. Like me, for instance! I don't own PJO or HoO, and I have to mention that every time! I have a little piece of my heart torn off every damn time! Ha ha!

eye twitches*

pupils start to dilate*

starts to shake*

inhale* exhale*

(meekly) I'm okay.

* * *

 ** _Hazel's P.O.V_**

Walking up to the stage after graduation wasn't exactly as nerve-wrecking as it was... how do I put this... final. It was just another super cool thing we got to tack on to an already super cool thing that led to the start of another super cool thing. So basically, the sprinkles on the icing on the cake.

As I started up the steps, I looked out into the crowd and saw my parents, excitedly waving at me. I waved back and glanced over to the guys, not standing too far away from them. They all gave us thumbs ups and big grins. Calypso was standing by a tall, dark headed man and a thin, auburn haired woman, both with looks of disinterest. I ignored her parents and sent her a smile. I often wondered why she was abducted by the snooty assholes in the first place- she was so nice and caring.

Speak- or think, I guess- of the she-devils and they shall appear. All three stared up at us with their robes unzipped to an almost disturbing length and ugly smirks. My happy immediately wavered. When they smiled like that, they brought hell. I pushed away the thought and pulled up a smile. I'd figure out what it was soon enough, but I decided that it wasn't until then that I'd freak out.

I grabbed the mic that was handed to me and switched it on. "Hey hey, party people!" A wave of cheers rose from the crowd. I grinned and walked to the very left of the stage.

"So," Piper started. "We just graduated..." More cheers and claps. "I know, right? What happened to us?"

"Anyways," Reyna continued. "We're so happy to be sharing this with you, and all that other sappy crap. Happy graduation, everybody!" Whistles sounded as the music started for Gold. I brought the mic up to my mouth and got ready to sing. All of a sudden, the music shut off. The lines to our mics died and the lights that were on the makeshift stage flickered out.

The people in the audience started murmuring uneasily. I took this as my cue to freak out. I looked over to Piper, who was standing next to me, and to Annabeth, who was standing next to her. They shrugged and I turned around to the DJ in the back.

"Hey," I called. "What happened?" A young guy, probably a freshman, quickly looked up to me and blushed.

"I- I'm sorry," He stuttered. "It has to be the drive you gave me. I don't know what happened..." I softened. I didn't mean to scare the poor guy.

"Hey, it's fine. Do you think you can start it back up?"

"Yeah?"

"Then work your magic." I smiled at him and turned back to the girls.

"Why do I have a strange feeling that this has something to do with the you knows?" Reyna murmured to us.

"Probably 'cause it does," I shrugged. "Whatever if it doesn't work. We could do it acapella."

"Yeah, true." Annabeth nodded. Suddenly, the music started up again. I let out the breath I was holding, and I gave the boy in the back a thumbs up.

I pulled the mic up to my mouth and got ready to sing the first note. Ironically, my voice did not come out of the microphone. It sounded more like that one person who thinks they're really good at singing, but actually sounds like a dying duck. Yeah. That noice blared through my mic and stopped when I pulled away. Talk about embarrassing.

I tried again, and the same God-awful sounded appeared. I pulled away and stared at the thing in my hand like it was a strange slug. Everyone in the audience laughed and pointed. Annabeth cleared her throat and tried to finish my part for me, but the same thing happened, only in a different pitch. The crowd was cracking up. The music stopped. I looked at the girls and we tried a harmony pitch. Guess what? Same thing happened, extremely off key and squeaky. Every student, teacher, and parent was holding their stomachs with tears rolling out of their eyes. _What in the hell was happening to us?_

"And that-" called one of the most infuriating voices I've ever heard "- is what they call auto tune." Miranda smirked as Rachel and Drew cackled like the witches they are. A hot, fiery pit of hatred boiled in my stomach. They'd do anything, wouldn't they? But, as the slutty shit- sorry, _Miranda-_ shifted, I saw a black thing hidden in her robes.

She was singing. Into. The actual. Fucking. Microphone. That little hoe bag was going down real fast.

I heard Piper growl by me, and I knew she saw what I saw. I turned to the guy in the DJ booth behind us, who also looked like he was trying not to laugh.

"Shut off the whole damn thing." He quickly wiped the smile off his face and shut the whole thing down. I forcefully slapped my mic in his hand and carefully walked back to the front of the stage. The other girls copied me.

"Well, that was weird," I called out and made a face. "Thanks, Miranda! And Drew. And Rachel. You kinda made this a do-or-die. We're deciding to do. Everyone else, we're gonna change this up. We shut the entire thing off, so we're going to sing without mics." I saw a few people start to turn away, shaking their heads. "We're going to do Wings, inspired by the monsters- I mean _girls_ \- that gave us our start."

 **All:** Momma told me not to waste my life

She said 'spread your wings, my little butterfly'

Don't let what they say, keep you up at night

 **Annabeth:** And if they give you- ooh

Annabeth went close to her whistle tone, which made everyone come back to listen. Their eyes widened with shock as I thought _HAAAHAHAHAHAH THE BITCHES LOSE AGAIN!_

 **All:** Then they can walk on by!

As the song continued, we had people sing along with us and sway to the invisible music. We finished our song and got an even louder applause than we did going up on stage.

"Alrighty! So, that had to be done the hard way, unfortunately," Annabeth said, massaging her twisted updo. "But, hopefully we're gonna make a call-" she signaled for Reyna to call, and she fished her phone out of a hidden pocket on her outfit- "and get this sorted out. Do the mics work now?"

The dude behind us nodded. "They should." Piper went and picked one up, turned it on, and sang a riff into it.

"There we go!" Her voice said from the speakers. I went up to grab one and turned it on.

"Heyo!" A staticky voice from Reyna's phone said. "How's it going? Something happen?"

"Hey, Leo?" Reyna asked. "Can you bring those extra flash drives from the van? We had... a little crisis."

He sighed, exasperated. "Fiiiiiine. You better buy me some junk food after this. You're making me do unnecessary exercise!" She rolled her eyes.

"'Kay. Dinner's on me."

" _Whoop!_ Be right there." He hung up and appeared in the courtyard a few seconds later. I just then realized Reyna didn't even have to offer to buy him dinner- Leo's flipping amazing.

As he quickly walked up the stage, I called into my mic, "Ah, and there's our hero! The mighty, brave, beautiful being that is Leo Valdez!" Everyone cheered and Leo started jogging towards the stage, pumping his fist in the air. That dork. He skipped up the steps and handed Reyna the drives.

"As you requested, my lady." He dramatically bowed and kissed her hand, winking at the crowd. After he jogged off stage, I saw Reyna sigh, looking so done with him. The audience chuckled. She handed the drives to DJ Dude... oh my God, that's such a good name... sorry, distractions. She handed the drives to DJ Dude and grabbed her mic.

"Okay, so moving on from that drama sequence," she said, and I knew exactly who she was looking at. "We have a few more songs for you. Here we go!" The rest of the 'mini concert' went super smooth. Our mics worked and everything. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the populars leave. _Good riddance,_ I thought, and continued with the song.

After the last song, we all bowed and thanked DJ Dude for figuring the whole thing out. The crowd erupted into applause as a few other people walked in.

"Thank you guys so much!" Annabeth called. "We're so, so proud to be among you as graduates, and we can't wait to see what the future has in store. Thanks for letting us share this with you. Have an amazing night and rest of your lives!" Loud whoops and cheers sounded.

"One more thing," I said, feeling my lips turn up slightly. "I brought four clipboards that I will now hand to the other girls-" I passed them out, each of the girls hold a slightly confused look "- and if you trust us, come write your numbers on the papers." Everyone looked around and shrugged. "I know, I know, but I promise that we _won't_ kill you and leave you tied up for the rats. This is why you must trust. We aren't forcing you- it's just for a little fun." That got people attention. I gave the board to the first girl who was in front of me, and my group mates did the same.

"Peach, what are we doing?" Reyna asked when they came over to figure out what I was scheming.

"Welllll... Apollo did agree we could have a party at the penthouse anytime we wanted." Annabeth grinned.

"Oh, hell yeah!" Piper and Reyna looked absolutely mortified. "Come on, it's once in a lifetime you graduate. Let's make every second count!" They hesitated.

"Ugh, fine," Piper caved. "Why not?"

"Um, multiple reasons," Reyna began. "We're probably going to have to buy a bunch of alcohol, we're going to have to find some kind of DJ, and the mess we're going to have to clean up-"

"Girl. Slow, down. I can call Michael," Piper volunteered.

"I'm sure we could get someone to help us clean up!" Annabeth reasoned.

"And you obviously haven't been in every room on the first floor," I said. "You seriously haven't found the liquor room yet?" Reyna had a look of complete terror painted on her face.

"I mean," I continued. "You could stay in your room the whole time if you wanted-"

"No! I mean, I don't wanna- ugh, I hate you."

I grinned. "So it's unanimous." Reyna grudgingly nodded after a few moments of silence. "Let the party commence!" We walked out of our huddle and I picked up the clipboard that was on the edge of the stage.

"Did everybody who wanted to write their number down do it?" I didn't see any hands raised, and the pages looked pretty full, so I gave another thanks. "See you soon!" I winked as people started to eagerly check their phones. I tucked the clipboard under my arm and started off the stage. Amber and the other girls congratulated us when we got off.

"Girls, y'all did so amazing!" Amber gave me a huge hug. "Like we knew ya would!"

"So proud of you ladies. We absolutely can't wait for your the shows!" Rita exclaimed.

"Oh my God," Reyna suddenly breathed. "No, no, no!" I turned towards the entrance to the school's courtyard, looking for whatever Rey saw. My breath cut short.

"Damn, girl. You want us to get you out of here?" Piper asked. She shook her head.

"No. It's fine, we need wait for the guys. Let's pray she doesn't notice me." We all turned into a circle, concealing Reyna. We started talking about random crap and tried not to look over at them. The guys were standing behind Frank, who was beaming and shaking his father's hand.

"You're officially a man, Frank. I'm proud of you." My heart melted a bit; I knew that one of the most important things to him was his father's approval. Frank's smile grew wider and he embraced Reyna's mom.

"Well done, _mi hijastro._ I'm very proud of you- your going to be amazing in college and beyond that. I wish I could say the same for your sister, who is hiding behind her friends like a coward." She spat the word friends as if we were nasty scum she saw on the sidewalk. I took in a breath and Reyna groaned, shaking her head. She turned to face her mom.

"Reyna," I started. "Don't force yourself."

"I have to face her sooner or later, _chica._ It might as well be now." She gave me a sad smile and pushed past me to her mother. Everyone, with the exception of two other people, had left or was in the parking lot, so I knew that they might take it too far. I grabbed Annabeth and Piper's hands to make sure that they knew to hold me back, 'cause we all figured I'd need it. I get so protective of my friends, even if it's against their war-hero mother that has a lot more experience with guns.

"Hi, Mother," Reyna started. "Sorry about my cowardice."

"That's not all you should be apologizing for," Bellona snapped back. "You know what you've done is beyond insubordinate!"

"I graduated, Mother." She pulled out her diploma and held it up. "I graduated in top ten percent in a grade level above my own, and I wore that orange robe with the white mantle. I made you a promise and I didn't break it, which is more than you can admit right now. So I apologize for my cowardice, Mother. I apologize that for four years straight, I was constantly bullied and tortured for trying to be perfect. Remember how many times I came home and I said I fell and got a bruised shin, or the random times I had to redo a homework assignment because 'I didn't think it was good enough?' Yeah, I know. So that's what I'm sorry for."

"I shouldn't even allow you to speak, Reyna. Bullied? _Really?_ You know better- actually, you don't. You ran away from home, and you deliberately disobeyed me. And for what, a career that going to last you three more weeks? Please, get yourself together. We both know how long your going to last. Singing is not what you're made for." Reyna was silent, and I could tell she was shocked. Her mother was usually a sensible person. Then again, so was Annabeth's...

"Am I still not good enough?" Reyna whispered. "Am I still not good enough for you? I've done everything you wanted me to. And when I want to do something- when I want to live my own life, even though it's not what _you_ want- it's all wrong. Why am I not allowed to be correct for once in my life? Why can't-"

"You used to be correct about everything! You used to _have_ everything!"

"And that's what they call a fucking facade, Mother!" She yelled, her voice rising. "It may have looked like I had everything, but no one is anything without rights to their own feelings and their own life. I guess that's another thing I have to apologize to you for: sorry that I smile and laugh when you don't see fit. I'm sorry that I'm happy when you don't want me to be. Why do I even bother? Why, do I even _try_ to be-"

"That's enough!" Bellona yelled. "That is enough, young lady. You are through talking, and you are through talking to me."

"No!" Reyna sneered with tears streaming down her face. "I am not done. I'm not done, because you don't get to say that. I'm officially allowing myself to have a soul, to have a spirit, and to have a voice. _You_ are through shutting me up! I guess I will never be good enough for you. I'm not even your daughter, am I? I was just an accident you had one drunk ass night in Iraq that you thought was too weak to travel to America."

Her mom gasped. "Reyna Avila Ramire-"

"And do you know what happened to me, huh, Mother? Do you actually know, _what I went through?"_ Her mother went silent. "Exactly. So I'm also sorry that you may understand what it's physically like to fight for freedom, but you've never known what it's like to have to fight emotionally. I finally found myself- I know who I am now. I know what I mean to myself... and what I mean to you. I'm a waste of your breath and air, but guess what? Your a waste of mine. And so, in fucking conclusion, I'm sorry that I'm still not good enough for you- no matter what I do." She turned back to us, determination and fury set in her dark eyes. "It's so on." She nodded at her mother. "Goodbye Mother- sorry, _Bellona_." She held up her dress, tightly clutched her diploma, and walked out of the courtyard.

It took me a minute to regain my bearings, then the girls and I walked out behind her. We made it to the bus before she completely broke down.

"I can't believe I did that!" She sobbed. We crowded around her and tried to comfort her, rubbing her back and telling her that she did the right thing.

"I mean, it was a little harsh," Ruby admitted. "But you sure as hell got the point across to her." Why did she choose to be blunt at the worst times?

"Don't worry about it Rey," Piper said, shooting a look at Ruby. "It'll be fine. You did what you thought you had to do. It's off your chest, and I know you'll feel better in the morning. Hell, maybe even tonight."

Reyna sniffled. "We better have a shit ton of alcohol then." She pushed herself off the ground and wiped her eyes and nose. "I'm done with crying for the rest of the night. Let's get out of here."

"That's awesome!" Leo exclaimed. "'Cause I'm really bad at comforting crying girls." I seriously forgot he was there. He stepped on the gas and got us to the penthouse.

"Okay!" Annabeth called when we got upstairs. She set down her crap on her desk and plopped down in the chair. "Let's get to planning." Piper called Michael; Annabeth, Ruby, Amber, Becca and Rita set up group texts with the address and info; Leo set off to buy some junk food; I showed Reyna the liquor room.

"Whoa," she said when I flipped on the lights.

"Yeah," I responded. "Have you ever drank before?" I didn't think she had, given her former 'perfectness.' In all honesty, I hadn't either. The thought of what could've happened to me freaked me out.

"No. Not, like, a whole drinks worth. I've tried a sip of Frank's beer once." She mimicked throwing up. "Then again, it was early last year." She shrugged. "Who knows now?" We grabbed a bunch of different bottles and set them out, both of us refusing to grab as little as possible. Neither of us wanted to be a wuss. Or maybe it was just me...

"Alright!" Piper said an hour later. "Michael'll be here in forty minutes or so, and the party starts in another hour. So let's get ready!"

"Get ready?" Reyna asked. "Aren't we already ready?" Piper lamely chuckled.

"Oh, honey. We are _not_ ready for a party." She dragged us up to her room.

"Okay, but I don't really want to change," I said slowly. The dress I was wearing now seemed nice and pretty. It was just a (pent)house party.

"It's a house party!" Becca exclaimed. I stood corrected. "We have to bring all the best aspects of the house forward. So that means we're dressing up. Nicely. Don't worry, it won't be too bad."

"Um," I said, not so excited with this whole thing. "Yeah. Great. Yay." In about fifteen minutes, they convinced me it wasn't a terrible idea. Our stylists had already grabbed their supplies from the bus and shooed us towards our rooms. Amber practically ripped my dress off of me, which was frightening beyond description. I slipped on my fluffy white robe and watched her hands move around the dress and the sewing machine she set up on my desk quick and efficiently. I was always amazed how fast she could fix or make something, but seeing her make it in person was so much more interesting. The machine stopped.

"Girl, if you're standin' over me while I'm workin', your dress is gonna look wonky. I can't see. You are literally blockin' the light."

"Oh." I stepped back. "Sorry. Continue." She machine whirred back to life and finished my dress. She held it up.

"Ta da!" She shortened it so it came up to my mid thigh and the sleeves were now spaghetti straps. When I slipped it on, it was tighter and more form fitting. "And these silver heels. Boom." I slipped them on and looked in the mirror.

"I actually love it. Thanks, Am!"

She chuckled sarcastically. "Don't call me Am."

"You sound like Annabeth," I grumbled. Speaking of, she bounded into my room with her romper transformed into a minidress. "Cute, Wise Girl."

"Thanks, Peach! You look great."

I flipped my curly hair over my shoulder. "Thanks." I turned to Amber and Ruby. "What about you guys? You're gonna stay, right?"

"Of course!" Ruby nodded. "We actually have some clothes on the bus. We'll go down and get them whenever you ladies are situated." Piper and Reyna walked in with Becca and Rita trailing behind them. Piper's long skirt was trimmed down so it was a little higher than mid-thigh. Reyna's high-low was now only a high, and the sleeves were cut off to display a silver necklace laid around her neck.

"You guys look so good!" I squealed.

"Thanks!" Piper checked her phone. "Alright, let's hurry and set everything up. Party starts in twenty minutes, so people probably won't start coming for another thirty. Let's get to it!" We started to set up, and in a few minutes, Leo came back with fifteen grocery bags.

"Success!" We tossed them on the couch. "There's pizza on its way." He pointed at Reyna. "You still owe me dinner. Also, we're moving all the furniture." We cleared the living room of all furniture except for the cart full of liquor just as Michael came in and started to set up.

"Thank you, so much," Piper said, handing him two hundred. "That good?"

He grabbed the money and grinned. "Perfect. What's on the playlist tonight?"

"Pop. Dance music," I responded. "Also, can you take requests? I'm sure there'll be plenty of those."

"Absolutely."

"And if the party runs past what we thought it would, you can leave if you want," Reyna threw in. Just then, the door bell rang. I walked over, trying to shake the sweat off my hands, and buzzed them up.

"Alright. Let's do this. Food?"

"Yep." Leo motioned to the trays of pizza and junk food.

"Music?"

"Present." Michael raised his hand.

"Decoration?"

"Beautiful," Annabeth said as she motioned around to the black and white themed balloons and streamers.

"...drinks?"

"Both kinds." Reyna pointed at the different coolers.

"That's pretty much all we need," Piper shrugged.

"Wait," I said, facing her. "How do you know so much about house parties?"

"When your mom's a superdiva and your dad's one of the most famous actors in America, you get used to it all. Also, Markus."

"Huh. Makes sense." The first group of people walked through the elevator and 'ah'ed at the place. The second group came shortly after. Then the third, forth, and fifth flooded in after that. Later, our girls came in with Calypso looking flawless.

"Girlies!" I called out. "You. Look. So. Hot!"

"Thanks, b!" Callie said, then air kissed my cheek. They blended in with the crowd shortly afterwards. Leo came back dressed looking polished and suave a minute later. And even though my heart was still taken, I will admit it- he did look like someone I'd get with. Even though almost the entire graduate class showed up, we could tell there were still some people missing.

"Where are the guys?" Reyna asked over the music that was already blaring.

"I don't know," I admitted. "Maybe they didn't come?" We went to ask Annabeth. She blanched.

"Oh my God I didn't even text them! Piper!" We all dug put our phones to call them. Frank picked up in five rings.

"Hey, Peach! Is Reyna okay? I know we didn't really get a chance to say hi but-"

"No! No, it's fine. She's okay." I was a little annoyed that the first thing he asked about was his stepsister who just told off her strict ass mother after emotional pressure and almost a completely embarrassing situation live on stage, but you know. It was fine.

I heard him sigh on the other line. "Thank God." He said something else, but I couldn't tell what it was over the loud music and the busy people talking.

"What?" He tried to say it again. "What? Sorry, Frank. Give me a second." I walked up the stairs a little bit. "Okay, again?"

"WHERE ARE YOU?" I winced and held the phone away from me. "Hello?"

"Yeah, I can hear you now."

"Oh. Sorry about that."

"Nah it's fine. We're at the penthouse... and we're having a party. We were texting a list of people, but for some reason it didn't get through to you. We didn't see you show up, so we assumed that you couldn't make it." _Or didn't want to come._ I didn't project the last thought. "Sorry that it's last minute, but it would be awesome if you guys wanted to come over." I then realized I was asking Frank to come to a party. Which was basically like asking him on a date. What the hell was I thinking?!

"Uh, yeah. Sure. Let me ask the guys."

"I think the girls are asking them, too. You still have the address?"

"Yeah. Give us a little bit and we'll be there."

"I thought you were going to ask the guys," I couldn't help asking.

"I- uh, you said the girls were asking them." Huh. Touché.

"Yeah. Alright. See you in a little bit. And please- just a little bit. I don't want people throwing up without someone who can stomach it."

He chuckled. "I'll hurry. See you." He hung up. Had I just _flirted_ with Frank? _Why was tonight the night of sudden confidence?!_

"Hey, girl," Annabeth said, coming next to me on the stairs. "You got a hold of Frank?"

"Yeah. They're heading over."

"Great. Because someone just asked where the bathrooms where and now I'm scared." I groaned and trudged down the stairs. The boys showed up thirty minutes later, all wide eyed and slack jawed.

"Yeah, yeah," I said before Jason said whatever he was about to say. "Was it worth it? I don't know yet. Food over there, drinks over there. And if you want to hide for a little bit, library's second floor first door you see. Thank you for flying air ' _I think we're stupid.'"_

"Hazel, quiet," Piper commanded. "We can still make this fun for us. And people'll start to listen to our conversation. We can't have them thinking that we're heartless bitches who didn't even want to set this up." She plastered on a huge grin. "Come on over here! We got shit to eat and a shit ton to drink."

She grabbed a bottle of tequila from a cooler, poured the contents in a tiny glass, and shot it back. I stood and watched, utterly horrified. How the hell did she do _that?!_

She turned and smugly smiled. "I'm done with all the shit we've been through this year. Can I say shit anymore in the next five minutes? I don't know. Shit. Anyways, Rey, you're up." She poured Reyna a shot and handed it to her. I looked at Reyna, who's face was masked with terror. I watched her swallow it back, firmly grab the glass, and gulp the alcohol down. Her mouth twisted in a frown and she shook her head.

"Whoa." She set the tiny cup down on the table. "That, is strong." She shook her head again, but she smiled. "I nominate Annabeth next."

"And I nominate Percy," Percy announced. He grabbed a can of beer and popped it open as Annabeth nervously took the glass from Piper. They both drank at the same time.

"Yikes!" Annie slammed her glass next to Reyna's. "Peach!" A volcano erupted in my stomach as I weakly grabbed the cup. The clear liquid didn't seem so harmless, but I've seen what it can do to people. I force the thought down with the vodka. The strong liquor seemed to smoothly slip down my throat, but it did so while burning acid on my taste buds.

"Oh, damn!" I put down my cup. "I could actually get used to that." My tone slipped into nonchalance. "It honestly wasn't as bad as I though it was going to be."

"I think a toast is in order, then," Reyna declared as Piper poured more shots. Each of us grabbed one and held it up. "To all the things we're leaving behind and the things that are yet to come."

"Amen!" Annabeth said. We all drank, and my face pulled itself back into a twisted mess. I looked over to the boys, none of them looking effected.

"How do you do that so casually?" I asked, extremely confused as how they didn't make a face.

"Practice," Markus smirked. "You also get good at learning what you like and what you don't. You look like a bourbon and coke girl."

"'Cause you're shit," Ruby remarked, appearing behind us. "Sorry, Peach. It's kinda true."

"Well then," I scoffed. "I think I'll grab a coke and bourbon 'cause I'm shit." I paused. "Oh, there's the fifth shit, Pipes!" I giggled and sighed. "Wait, sixth shit. Seventh? Eh."

The guys and Ruby shared a look. In a few minutes I understood why. After almost two cups of bourbon and coke, I was laughing my ass off with some girl I barely knew by the name of... Brittney? Bethany? It was something like that. Oh well.

Soon the other girls joined me in my glorious drunkenness. I turned away from Bella and saw Annabeth, Rita and Piper all dancing in the middle of our living room. Reyna was making out with Markus by the stairs, Becca and Amber were trying to flirt with the same guy, and Ruby was toasting with a random girl about friendship, which made me laugh again.

I saw Frank, Percy and Jason all laughing and drinking with a can of beer in their hands. When I saw them by cart of drinks, my throat suddenly felt dry and itchy. _Oh, well!_ I thought. _Time for another drink!_

I walked up to the cart to grab another solo cup. "Heyyy. What cha' doin'?" They all looked to each other and tried not to smile. They were failing.

"Peach, are you drunk?" I had to think about it.

"Uhhh, maybe?" I started giggling. "Probably." I started laughing. Like, something I'd usually be embarrassed about. "Definitely!" They all looked at each other again, this time with what looked like nerves. I guess I was right, because trying to remember events is hard when you're drunk.

"Uh, hey-"

"Hay is for horses!" I thought that was hilarious. Percy cracked a grin.

"Not it!"

"Not it!" Jason yelled after him. "Sorry, man. I got enough of that." Frank groaned.

"You guys suck," he called after them as they walked away. He turned to me and took a breath. "Hey, Peach."

"Hay is-"

"Yep! Is for horses. Uh, you gotta drink some water." The smile on my face wavered.

"Why? I'm fine! I can handle another one!"

He sighed and led me away from the cart. "Haze, I gotta be real with you. You're pretty drunk."

"Pretty, huh?" I smirked at him. "Did you just call me pretty?"

"Uh," he stuttered. "I- uh, no. I said you're pretty dr-"

"Aw, thanks!" I said, obviously only paying attention to what I wanted to hear. "You know, I think you're pretty, too."

He blanched. "W-what?"

I giggled. "I said _you're pretty._ I thought you could've assumed I thought that." I shrugged and I felt my eyelids start to get heavy. "I've had a huge crush on you for, like, forever. The girls said I was obvious, and I thought that meant you knew about it. Oh, well. Now you know. _Nooww you knooww!_ "

His expression was dumbfounded. My words started slurring as I continued. "Yeah, I knew it was kinda impossible. I knew that since you were so into your studies, and getting into college, and your hockey, and everything else that you didn't have time to consider me as anything else but your sister, so I was really quite heart broken." His face didn't shift. "What, you don't believe me? Fine, I'll show you." I grabbed his face and pulled it down to mine, softly kissing him. I pulled away as soon as I snapped to attention. Through the murky cloud covering my brain, a vague warning light started flashing. But did I listen to it? If you said yes, you're either desperate to believe otherwise or you obviously do not know me at all.

"Uh," I said intelligently. "Sorry."

"Don't be," He said back. He kissed me again, slow and sweet while my brain fogged back up, dissolving the warning light. I couldn't hear a single beat of music, because internally I was freaking out so bad I was going to have to down another two shots to calm myself down. The music faded into a dull pulse, and as dizzy as I was getting, I couldn't pull away. Not from Frank, the boy I was crazy in love with and would literally die for. Which I did reveal to him that night, so no matter what I did, I was screwed. Unless I stepped up...

I pulled away and smiled. "You wanna go out with me?"

He shook his head in surprise. "What?"

"I mean," I continued, alcohol still controlling my brain. "Since we're doing this, we might as well, right? I mean, why not?"

He sighed. "Hazel, not like this. This isn't how we want it to start."

"But if I don't do something now, then I'll never get you," I whined. "Alcohol is an amazing invention, I'll tell you that much. Confidence _overload_. Usually don't need too much more of that, but it's helping a shit ton tonight!"

"Hazel, please-"

"Please what?" My barrier was falling apart. "Please, what, Frank? Please you? Please the girls? The guys? Please everyone on that dance floor? Please Apollo and Thalia and Leo? Please everyone who had ever listened to a note I ever sang? Please my parents, and Piper's parents, and Annabeth's parents and your parents and-" I was cut off by a huge hug. I buried my face in his shirt as tears burned down my face.

"I have to please so many people, Frank. There are so many people I could let down. Including myself. I've let myself down too many times. I hate alcohol."

Frank tried for a small laugh. "You said you loved it thirty seconds ago-"

"I've seen what it does to people," I continued. "I've seen how it affects people and what it makes them do. I was an accident. I know they tried to hide it from me, but they couldn't be more obvious when I ask about that kind of stuff. I wasn't supposed to even exist."

"Peach, I'm so-"

"If you're going to say sorry, don't. I don't need an apology. You didn't do anything. What I need is a damn drink before I flood the place." I started back over towards the cart, but Frank stepped in front of me.

"Hazel, please. You need to-"

"On the contrary," I interrupted. "I don't _need_ to do anything. I don't have to do anything I don't want to, but I can do anything I want to. It's my house, so technically, it's my rules. Now, sweetie, please get out of my way." He hesitated, then stepped aside.

"I'm trying to protect you. You have no idea what could happen while your drunk." I stopped and turned back to him.

"Fine. Since you didn't hear a word I said, I'll say it again." I walked up to him. "I'm a fucking accident. My father cheated on my stepmom when he met my mother in a bar, where she was anything but sober. They had a fling, decided they actually liked each other, and started going out. Guess what? Mom got knocked up while everyone thought she was a witch and my father was 'happily' married to his trophy wife with two kids. Last time I met my stepsister, she accused me of stealing my father away from her. She said that everything-" my voice cracked. "Everything was my fault. That her crappy life was all my fault and I should've never been born. I can't imagine you'd know how it felt to hear that at age five, but it sucked shit for me. Her mom told me I was witch's spawn and literally shoved a wooden cross at me. A wooden. Cross. Who does that? I mean, who does that to a child? I've tried to do every nice thing I could to prove her words wrong. But can I? Nah, not really."

He was silent. And he had a right to be. But he didn't have the right to tell me what to do and what not to do in my house. I shook my head.

"Sorry, Frank, but that was Mom. I think I should be aloud to have a little bit of control in this situation."

"But isn't that why you originally didn't drink?" He asked, breaking his silence. "You were nervous you were gonna make her..." he cut off as he realized what he was saying. But it was too late.

"Oh. Okay. That's why. Exactly." I turned away to go upstairs, suddenly not feeling so well.

"Wait. Hazel, wait!" Frank called after me.

"No. I'm good." My stomach burned and my head spun in circles as I staggered upstairs to my room. I managed to lock my door and get to the toilet before I threw up the little food and the lot of alcahol I had. _For the better,_ I thought. _Don't want to make Mom's mistake. Well, at least I won't get pregnant in high school, 'cause that shit's over!_

A million and one thoughts floated somewhere in my mind, yet I couldn't focus on a single one- except what Frank said. ' _You were nervous you were gonna make her...'_ Mistake. That's what he was going to say. And that was the boldest word in my head as I passed out by the toilet, in my huge bathroom, in my beautiful room, in my million dollar penthouse.

* * *

 **Jeez. These things always end on a bad _note._ Hehe. Faaaaaaaaanks. That's it.**

 _ **~ TheKeeperGeek**_


	14. Sorry 'Bout It (AN)

Don't get too excited- it's just an author's note...

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HEYYYY GUYYYYYYS!

I promise I'm not dead (yet). I'm super busy, wrapping up the end of the year for school and preparing for next year and family schizz and stuff like that. And yes, writer's block is real. That, or overflow of ideas that will not stop to the point that I literally can not focus when I'm writing.

But, you know.

I deal.

Sorry for delay; I'll try to get the next chapter out ASAP. And trust me- I have so much crap to pour on the girls it's ridiculous.

Bye-bye...

For now.

 ** _~TheKeeperGeek_**


	15. Fourteen- The Cloud That is Female Anger

**Loooooool how about I literally said I'd get this out ASAP and it's been like a year...**

 **AYYYYYYYYYYYYYY ALL THE PEOPLESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! Sorry it's been a while; when the school year begins, everything else ends. Especially my free time. I'm obviously not going to be able to update as much as I used to, and even then it wasn't too much. So apologies from the past, present, future, and anything in between. Now, please enjoy while I try to balance classes, dance, clubs, and trying to please you guys...**

 **Quick thing I forgot. Yes, I did delete the last chapter (Twenty-One Questions?) because I decided I wanted to do something different with the story. Then I decided that I wanted to keep it the exact same. So I know you might be confused; don't worry. I'm confused too. But I'll try to work everything out again. I'll probably remake Twenty-One Questions? after this chapter. Thank you. Love you. Have an amazing day/night.**

 **WAIT! ALSO!: I'm thinking about doing a little subseries for _Possibly Noticed,_ for all of the girls' backgrounds and what their life was like before Chapter One. What do y'all think? Yes? No? Am I annoying? Leave a review to let me know! Okay, I'm done now. Bye bye. Maybe...**

 **For my Americans (which, yes, includes all of North America): Happy Thanksgiving!**

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 ** _SHOUT OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUTTTSS!:_**

A special, special thank you to **YesImSuperKatara, emenem3211, moonwolf0093** and **ryanyz10** for adding _Possibly Noticed_ to your favorite's list, and to **PercabethShipper4Life** and **moonwolf0093** (again!)for following _Possibly Noticed_! Thank youuuuuuuuuu!

Also, a little part in this is a bit of a tribute to a life and love lost. May they prosper in Elysium.

(The text may give a little bit of it away, so if you haven't read The Burning Maze, I suggest you do so quickly. Like, before you read this.)

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 **Disclaimer :**

Guys, I'm flipping tired. Don't come for me. And do _not_ tell me that I don't own PJO and HoO or the characters. Just... just don't.

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 ** _Piper's P.O.V_**

Waking up with a serious crick in my neck, half slung on the ottoman in the living room, the smell of thrown up beer burning in my nose, and my phone, shoes, and possibly Annabeth, Reyna and Hazel missing was not what I wanted to wake up to on any day. I most certainly did _not_ want to start the day hungover (God, I knew what _that_ felt like) and missing my best friends. I peeled myself off of the ottoman and got up, trying to fix my clothes. _Okay,_ I thought to myself. _You know what? Screw parties._

I crawled up the stairs to my room, which seemed nearly forty miles away, and pulled a pair of shorts and a jacket off of a hanger. I forced myself to drink from a cup of water I had previously left on my nightstand before filling it up again and swallowing some aspirin. I took a hot shower before changing into a comfy sweatshirt and Nike pros and chugging yet another glass of water as I walked towards the stairs from my room. _I thiiiink I told Leooo to get some, uh, ginger. Wait, did I? Ugh, I forgot how much hangovers suck!_

Right before I was about to step downstairs, a thought faded into my mind. Anna... something. Anna... who. And something about a peach? Ooh, a peach sounded good- wait. That's... probably my friends, isn't it?

I stumbled into Hazel's room and looked around. Everything was still in place- her bed was still made, and the fluffy white chair she sometimes fell asleep in was unoccupied and in good condition. Panick rose, deflated, then rose again in my chest when I stumbled into her bathroom and found her passed out by the toilet.

"Hazel," I called as I knelt down by her. "Hazel! Hazel, wake up." I started to shake her, but she didn't budge. I looked in the toilet. Yep, she threw up. I flushed it down and flipped over my friend. She didn't look like she choked on anything, so I checked her pulse. She was breathing. She was fine. It was fine, because she was alive. I cupped my hands under the sink and filled my hands with water. I walked over to my intoxicated friend and dumped water on her face.

"Ah!" She groaned. She shook her head and wiped he eyes. "What the fuck, Piper?" She held her head. "Is this what a hangover feels like?"

"Depends. Do you feel like you've been hit multiple times by an eighteen wheeler and your brain was thrown in a freezer, thrown in fire, then thrown in a blender?"

"Pretty much."

"Then, yes, that's probably a hangover." She sighed, shook her head, winced, and tried to stand up. I grabbed her hands and hauled her to her feet.

"Ow! Oh, _shit._ That _hurt!_ "

"Sorry, Peach, But we need to work on getting rid of the hangovers. I'm pretty sure I told Leo to grab some ginger and stuff to make a Prairie Oyster-"

"A prairie what now?"

"It doesn't actually have oysters in it. Just a bunch of other stuff that seems nasty but you're gonna drink it anyways."

"Whatever. As long as I can get rid of..." she motioned to her whole body. "All of this."

I looked at her and chuckled. "Honey, only time can truly rid you of a hang over. But I can help." I grabbed her hand and pulled her downstairs to the kitchen. Reyna was starting to wake up, pulling herself to her feet with the help of the staircase railing. _'She fell asleep on the stairs?'_ I thought as guilt clouded my mind. I hadn't even realized that she was the closest one to me and that she could've easily been in the same situation that I thought Hazel was in.

"Hey, Rey," I said in a quiet voice. I walked over to her and grabbed her arm, helping her balance. "You alive?"

"Absolutely not," she said, and tripped over the one high heeled shoe on her foot.

"Whoa, whoa!" I caught her as she fell and stood her upright. "Girl, you gotta take care of yourself!" I put her arm around my shoulders, grabbed Hazel's hand, and led them downstairs like the mom I am. I set them down on the couch and propped them up with pillows and blankets, then looked around for my phone. Only, naturally- I couldn't find it.

"You have _got_ to be joking me," I whispered to nobody.

"If you're looking for your phone," someone said from behind me, "it's not here."

I whirled around to find Leo leaning against a pillar in the hall that led to the guest bedrooms. "Yes," he said before I could ask. "I stayed here, and with a rather pretty girl." My face quickly changed from relief to utter horror as he winked at me.

"Did you bang in my bedrooms?"I was starting to feel a little nauseous...

"Relax. A- it was your guest bedrooms, and b- technically, it was Apollo's guest bedrooms." I hugged my stomach and mimicked throwing up. He waved a hand at me, then started towards the other side of the room. "And I did get the stuff for the Prairie Oyster you asked me for."

"Thank God. I don't know if I'm half alive or half dead."

"Well, we'll help that in ten minutes tops." He pushed open the doors to the kitchen and walked around the large centered island.

"Where did you say my phone was again?" I asked as we started to pull the ingredients out of the grocery bags.

"Annabeth took off with it this morning." So she had left. Why, exactly? And please don't say she tried to drive!

"Did you see where she went?"

"Huh, let's see. Did I see where she went... hm." I rolled my eyes. "I don't think so. My super x-ray vision didn't let me see through the walls and track her to her destination. What do you think?"

"I think you're a dumb ass," I retorted, and walked over to the cabinets. "You know what I meant." I pulled open a white-washed cabinet door and found... nothing? I looked through the others, and still found no cups. Or any silverware for that matter. "So he can furnish every room in the house, and repaint all of our rooms, yet he can't buy us some simple kitchen supplies?"

"Well," Leo said, pulling out plastic spoons and cups. "Y'all are going to have to get your own place eventually. We just wanted y'all to feel comfortable enough to start, then you could move out and begin your adventure as adults. Or whatever you want to call yourselves."

"Uh, yeah. How's your whole 'moving us out' idea gonna work with that, exactly?" Technically, we're still all underage, so we couldn't buy a house that wouldn't go through our parents. The thought of all of our parents owning our house together made me shudder.

"Oh. Well, guess we over looked that one little detail." He handed me a plastic cup of which he blended a mixture of a raw egg, brandy, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, ketchup, and red wine vinegar. I looked in disgust at my cup.

"Hey," Leo shrugged, though his eye gleamed. "You asked for it. Literally and metaphorically." I socked his arm and was rewarded with a pained yelp. While I wasn't thinking about it, I downed the disgusting concoction and gagged as the liquid garbage fell down my throat.

"I hate this so much," I whined. Leo grabbed three more cups full of Prairie Oysters and started towards the doors opened to the trashed living room. I followed, shoulders slumped and any trace of energy drained. Just as I crossed the doorway, I heard a gasp of disbelief.

"You did _what?_ " Reyna said.

"I know!" A familiar voice cried. "I'm a total- oh. Hi..." A tone of nervousness slipped into her voice and I stepped out from behind Leo. My headache was starting to fade, thanks to that damn slime that was my hangover cure.

"Calypso?" I asked. She was cuddled into Hazel with a blanket wrapped around her while the former was staring at her, blushing mad. "I didn't know you stayed..." I started to piece it all together as embarrassment, shock and anger filled my gut. "Holy fuck!" I whirled to Leo, whom has now been spotted by the three other girls. "You slept with our best friend?"

Leo's faced blanched and Calypso let out a squeak. "You- you know him?" She was trembling.

"You slept with _Leo?_ " Was Hazel's question, as she spun the terrified girl to look her in the eye.

"I- I guess?"

"And I'll be back." Reyna ran to the bathroom and threw up. Literally.

"Oh, honey," Hazel said, then rushed to help her. Calypso wailed and hid her face in her hands.

"I can't believe this is happening to me!" She started to hyperventilate and tears leaked out of her eyes. I faced Leo, who was still pale, and slapped him across the face. "Ow! Shit, Pipes, I didn't-" The nickname earned another slap.

"I can _not_ believe you!" I yelled at him. "Did you not think for _one second_ that she might be, I don't know, too damn intoxicated to give you consent? She is a high school student! Do you seriously thing that sleeping with her was okay? I know how well you handle your liquor. Hell, I've seen you when you should be drunk but could pass a DUI test in a minute flat. So you should've been in _your_ right mind and-"

"Piper, please," Calypso murmured from the couch. "It really wasn't it fault." But I could see that she was still shaking, and tears were still obviously rolling down her cheeks. I glared at Leo one last time and made ,my way to the couch. He looked down in shame. _Good,_ I thought. _Let him be ashamed._ But inside all the anger bubbling inside, I felt a pang of guilt. I didn't really want to make him upset, but taking advantage of a girl who couldn't help herself? Now that's something that's very hard to forgive.

"Hey, Cali. Are you alright?" I knew the answer, but I still felt obligated to ask. Leo set the cups down on the coffee table and silently began cleaning up the mess of a living room he had.

"Yes, I'm fine," she answered, but there was no way I believed that. I gave her a look, asking her to reconsider her answer. She gave me a weak smile. "Really, Pipes. I'm fine. Just a little startled. I over reacted. I'm not hurt. See?" She held her arms out for me to inspect, but I knew that wasn't where she was hurt.

"Well, that's good." Hazel and Reyna came out of the bathroom with a trash bag that was slowly filling with cans and cups.

"I guess we should get to helping, huh?" Calypso asked.

"Only if you're up for it." She rolled her eyes.

"Piper, I'm not dying," she said in a snarky tone. "I can pick up trash."

I smirked. "Well, fine, then. Be that way. I will show you my love no more!" I got up and grabbed the trash bag from Hazel and Reyna. "And all three of you need to drink those." I pointed to the table. "They'll help a lot with the headaches. And go fill them up with water once you're done and chug that down, too." The next hour was filled with whining about the nasty drink, whining about the smell of barf, and whining about sore arms, legs, and feet. But within that time, we had managed to restore the living room, kitchen, downstairs bathrooms, and- yes- even Leo and Calypso's room. After I decided to forgive Leo, I made the point that they both needed to clean that room together, and I almost couldn't help myself from laughing as the blood immediately rushed to their faces. My mother's side was starting to make an appearance as my matchmaking mind came into play. Even through the unfortunate events of last night, I couldn't help but think of how cute they would be together...

Hazel had made a quick call to a cleaning service close to the complex and got them to arrive in thirty minutes. They were able to take care of plunging the toilets and mopping the floors to clear them of unspeakable things while we made a clean sweep of the next two floors. Soon- which wasn't very soon at all- we were finished with all the chores, the penthouse looking as beautiful and pristine as it did before we even moved in. We paid the cleaning service extra since we forced upon them the nasty job that is picking up a teenage party. After we put everything away, we collapsed on the couch.

"It's official," Hazel announced. "We are never _. Ever._ Throwing another party."

"Amen to that," Reyna agreed, flinging her arms out to change her appearance to that of a starfish. A sudden _ding_ caught everyone's attention, and the doors slid open to reveal Annabeth, Percy, and all of the guys with mops, trash bags, and buckets. Trying to take in the neatness of the space, all of their faces fell to the floor in astonishment. Even though it really wasn't that funny, Reyna began to laugh. Hazel and I joined, then Calypso and Leo. Soon enough, we were all rolling around on the couch, tears leaking, stomachs sore, and the most melodious sound I heard all day echoing through the room.

"Is it really that funny?" Annabeth asked. "And what happened here? It looks... clean?" I rolled off the couch and walked over to Annabeth, wiping my eyes.

"I hope you realize," I told my dear friend, "that first of all, none of us are helpless. Second, fine, yes, we did get help from a cleaning service. And third, you're going to have to do something pretty amazing in order for me to forgive you for stealing my phone, running off and having fun without us." I motioned to her nice clothes. "Where did you go exactly? Did it really require you to get up at an indecent hour and put on nice clothes, do your hair and makeup, and steal my phone?"

Percy and Annabeth looked at each other, colored a bit, then looked away. A familiar feeling returned.

"Oh my God. Please don't tell me y'all hooked up, too!" Annabeth's face exploded with heat as Percy gaped.

"Excuse me, what?" Annabeth said in a tone an octave higher than what it normally is. I looked back over to the couch.

"Oh. Never mind." The rest of the guys in the back were snickering so hard I thought they were shaking the elevator. I stepped aside to let them in the room.

"Please, leave your cleaning supplies by the door," Reyna said with a smirk on her face. "We appreciate the help, but I'm afraid you're a little too _late._ " She almost sneered the last word, and I saw my brother flush. My mind began racing; why- never mind. How did all this shit happen in _ONE NIGHT?_

As they filed out of an elevator, I saw Frank cast a careful look at Hazel, and Hazel's look turned so stony I could crack it with a hammer. I stared around at my friends, wondering what in the hell happened to us. The lovebirds were estranged; Hazel was glaring at her lifelong crush; Percy and Annabeth weren't flirting, arguing, or even talking to each other; and now Calypso and Leo were practically forced into a weird relationship because she's our bestie, he's our one of our managers, and they wound up getting it on and off last night in our bedrooms!

I walked uncomfortably over to Jason, who was assessing the whole situation as well. "Are we the only ones not looking for a reason to not completely destroy one another or run into a ditch?" Jason murmured to me.

"Strangely that sentence made since, and I think so," I whispered back. "The tension is so thick I could cut it..."

"I know what you mean. Frank and Markus were fidgeting the whole way here, and I had to drive them because Annabeth didn't want to leave Percy's side, and he wasn't moving from the driver's seat in his car."

"Oh, my God." I looked around at the glares. "So, uh, you wanna leave? I'm actually getting nervous." Annie was fidgeting, Hazel was still glaring, Calypso was casting a cautious glance at the boys, and Reyna looked like she might chuck something at Markus' head. And they were all standing opposite of the boys, like we were back in the middle school cafeteria.

"Great idea." He pulled his keys out of his pocket and slowly backed towards the button to open the elevator, pressing it a good five times. When the button dinged and all the heads turned towards us, I snatched the keys out of Annabeth's hand and ran into the elevator.

"Apparently, this is for your own good," I told them as Jason banged on the close button. The doors slid shut on faces desperate for an escape, and we made our way down to the lobby, chuckling to ourselves and praising each other for a job well done.

"Now that we've ditched the cloud that is female anger," he said once we stepped into the parking lot, "what do you want to do?" I smirked and stroked my (fortunately) non-existent beard.

"Weeell... are you hungry?"

"Actually, I'm starving."

"Great, because I could go for some Taco Bell right about now."

"That sounds amazing. Good choice!" He clicked a button on his keys, and I was directed to a yellow mustang.

I whistled. "Whoa. New ride?"

"Yeah. Dad left again and said he thought I needed something to keep me busy. Little did he- or I- know that I'd have to keep up with you girls to make sure you survive to adulthood!" He said as a joke, but I heard the truth behind it. They all had done so much for us, and we didn't even take the time to realize it. Or, maybe it was just me...

"Yeah," I cringed, pulling open the car door. "About that. Look, I'm sorry I haven't been appreciative or anything for everything-"

"Jeez, Pipes," he groaned, yanking the door shut after he slid in. He turned to me and locked me in place with his gorgeous- wait, no. Bad, Piper, _bad!_ Remember: friend, not fiend nor fiery hot stud you used to be madly in love with. Friends. "When are you gonna realize I'm doing this 'cause we're friends?"

Yeah... ouch.

That still kinda hurt.

But we both new that it was so much better and easier that way. So I smiled and said, "Yeah, yeah. Thanks, Jase."

"No problem. Now, Taco Bell?" My stomach grumbled my response.

"Oh, absolutely." We drove for a few minutes, talking about nothing in particular. Just two _friends,_ hanging out on a Saturday afternoon. Once we pulled up to the restaurant, my mouth watered with the amazing sight. We went somehow seamlessly through the drive-thru line, and both of us were chowing down on a grassy central park hill in no time.

Though we've mended our slightly broken friendship pretty easily, there was a question that was seriously nagging at me. I set down my seven layer burrito and looked up at him, taking a long draw from my Sprite. His hair blew softly in the light breeze, and his eyes twinkled when the sun played around him. It seemed like he was a literal golden boy.

Yes, I'll admit it. He is still dangerously hot. He is still an amazing guy. But that doesn't mean that we're right for each other. It's not right for me to drag him unnecessarily into even more of a spotlight than he's in right now. It's not fair. For as long as I've known him, he's been trying to avoid it. And even though I know all of this- even though I had to force myself to believe that I only liked him as a friend, I decided to ask my question.

"Hey, Jase?"

"Hmph?" He answered from behind his tacos.

"Can I ask you a question that is both extremely personal and may be equally as embarrassing or unfortunate thought provoking?"

"Uh..." he swallowed his bite. "I don't think I really like this, but sure?"

"If you don't want to answer it, it's fine!" I added quickly. "I'd get it. But, um, yeah. It's kind of personal. Just tell me if you don't want to answer it. Seriously, I'd underst-"

"Pipes?"

"Yeah?"

"Just ask the question."

"Okay." I shifted my hands into my lap and sighed. "So, um, I kind of just tried to forget about it because I just really wanted to still be friends and stuff, so... well..." Ugh, _why_ was it so hard for me to spit it out? I took in a breath. "Did you really mean what you said? When we were in the closet at The Tonight Show? Like, if you meant that you loved me, then why was it so easy for you to forget me?"

His eyes widened immediately and all the blood in my body rushed to my face. "Sorry, stupid question. I told you it was personal."

"No, it's fine." He forced out a humored chuckle. "Uh, wow. I guess I've never thought of that." He considered it for a minute, which made my heart double time again and again until it felt like it would fly out of my chest.

"Well," he said. "I guess the feelings never really went away." It was my turn for the eyes popping out of head ordeal. "Yeah, sounds weird, I know. But, I mean, they really haven't. I still love you, in a way. It just feels like it died down a little bit. I know that I can't ever really have you, and that we're not right for each other, so the intensity just... I don't know." He made a flicking motion with his hand. "Poof."

You know, when someone says that the intensity of their love for you disappears- even worse, 'poof's- no matter whether you were dating, engaged, married, or just awkward friends, it still kinda stings. Even if you know it's for the best.

"I'm not saying I don't love you- I do. But not like- or not in the way that... ugh." His head dropped slightly. "I'm not good at this." He looked back up at me with a cringe. "Sorry, this is awkward."

I laughed. "Yeah. Very. But don't be sorry. It was my question anyway. And I get it. It's the same way for me." His smile picked up, but turned sincere as he looked deeper into my eyes. It was one of those looks that makes you want to sigh, swoon, and fall in love. But I couldn't. Life isn't fair, but I can sure as hell make it as equal as I possibly could.

"Pipes, no matter what our relationship is, I will always you." I accidentally let my breath catch in the slightest. "No matter what. A piece of my heart will forever be dedicated to you. Even when I die," he held out to make sure I was looking at him like he was looking at me, "I will never stop loving you."

I was speechless. Well, can you blame me? What girl doesn't want to hear _that?_ I held my gaze, then broke into a sudden laughter. For some strange, demented reason, I cackled. He looked at me like I was growing a snout, tail, and spots.

"Seriously? I just poured my heart out in front of you, and you laugh?" As I look back into his eyes, I saw the hurt beneath the jesting mask. I cleaned my face up quickly.

"No! No, I'm sorry. I just, I don't know. Wasn't expecting that." I reached up to cup his face. "That, Jason, was beautiful." A dark thought clouded my mind. "Drew is a lucky, lucky girl."

He smirked. "Thanks. And I know you hate her, but she showed me a side of her no one ever would have expected. A tender, kind side." I called up a look of disgust and terror.

"Oh my God, you _slept_ with her?"

"NO! Sweet Jesus, woman. That is, just- no. No, that was bad." I rolled onto my side, clutching my stomach as I laughed my guts out.

"Oh! Oh, God. That was good. That was very good." His expression didn't agree, but the longer I laughed, the more he joined me. We wound up tumbling off of our little hill and into the grassy field below. I sat up, fanning my face and attempting to dry my eyes with my shirt. Dizzy from spinning and drunk with joy, I reached over to Jason and planted a kiss on his cheek. He sat up with me, staring, questioning.

"Sorry if that seemed kinda crude, but I feel like you deserve it. You are such an amazing guy, and I'm honored to be your friend. And... I still love you, too. I don't care if it's rash, and I don't care if it's wrong. But now, you're my friend. I am so happy for that, because I can still love you that way, even if it's spoiled, and crazy, and insane. I'm allowed to have feelings, I'm allowed to embrace them. And no matter what kind of sense someone else or I try to talk myself into, I know I can never ignore the strange bliss I felt with you. So even if it's from a distance, and even if you're dead," I smirked, "Or maybe me. Who the hell knows? Other than God, I don't care about judgement. All I care about are my friends, my family, and occasionally, me. So the world can kiss my ass because I am me, and, yes, I love you."

He stared for a second, and for that second, I didn't give one damn. I had said what I needed to say, what needed to be said. And I'm proud of it. As I focused back on him, he sent me a huge, brilliant smile. "Piper, you are a poet," he said, a gave me a hug. When I hugged him back, I could tell that we had finally come to terms with our arrangement. We were simply playing the cards we had been dealt. It didn't necessarily mean that we like them, but we're doing our best.

Our drive back seemed to be even better than our drive there. Crazily singing songs at the top of our lungs, folding over ourselves in laughter at some joke that was made, and, generally, just trying to live in the moment. Seize the day- carpe diem, right? Live our best lives in just forty short minutes because as blissful as it seemed now, life would turn on a highway to hell in just forty short seconds. This we knew, so this we refused to acknowledge as we careened towards the lovely penthouse that I just happened to live in for the time being.

Yes, we would have to buy a new house. Eventually. Not now. Not as we're celebrating still being teenagers. Not as we're celebrating a moment in life. A good moment. A grand moment. A moment to remember, through good and bad. Especially since your attitude and view of life really can be changed in forty seconds.

As we pulled up to the penthouse, Markus stalked outside with Frank and Percy hot on his heels. His eyes had a terrible flame that had always frightened me when we were children. It was a black flame, that didn't just trap his eyes. It corded up and down his arms and legs, the muscles in his neck taut, his teeth clenched, his fingers curled into impossibly tight balls.

"Whoa," Jason said as he stepped out of the vehicle. "You good, man?"

Markus sent a sneer at me. "Does it _look_ like I'm good?" Goosebumps erupted on my arms. As his sister, I knew exactly how strong he was. Especially as the sister that spiraled into a black hole right after him what felt like so long ago.

"Hey, Mark?" I asked, cautiously.

He held his had in front of my face, shunning me. "Just don't- don't talk to me, Piper. You really fucked things up for me and Reyna. So thanks." He turned me over and took the keys out of my pocket. He ran off to his car.

"Piper," Frank said, running a hand over his face, "I know you were trying to help, but you really messed things up. For all of us. Really, really bad." Percy nodded, a sorry gleam in his eyes.

"FRANK!" Markus yelled from his car. "HURRY THE FUCK UP OR I'M LEAVING WITHOUT YOU SHITS AND PERCY'S KEYS!"

Percy sighed. "Sorry, bro." He shook his head at Jason. "We'll try to calm him down. It's... probably not a good idea if you come." They jogged after him as the car door slammed and the engine revved. My heart was beating eighty miles an hour in my chest as I raced inside and to the elevator. Jason barely made it in before I punched the buttons. I started to shake with nerves. Did I really mess it up that bad? After what I did was only trying to mend the brokenness of my friends?

"Hey," Jason said. "I'm sure it isn't as bad as they made it seem." I gave him a look. "Seriously. You know how sensitive Markus is with his feelings. He doesn't like to let anyone in. And when he does..." He didn't need to finish; I knew where he was going with this. I tried to calm myself down. Maybe he was right- maybe Markus was exaggerating, and it wasn't as bad as it seemed at the moment. I took a few deep breaths before the elevator chimed to announce our arrival.

The doors slid open to reveal a mess of the house. A vase had shattered on the floor. Flowers were scattered everywhere. Pillows were strewn across the floor. And Reyna and Hazel were crying their eyes out.

"Did you forget to throw the ceiling fan, too, asshat?" Reyna whirled to snarl at the doors, and it died for a moment when she saw me. My eyes widened and her splotchy face turned red as even more tears streamed from her eyes.

Annabeth, who was rubbing their arms and trying to console them, pushed through them and walked until she was a few inches from my face. "Pipes, you really should've waited to come back-"

She stepped to the side as Reyna came up behind her. "This is _your_ fault, Piper." She jabbed a finger at me with a glare so hard I wanted to shrivel up in a ball. "You have no idea how badly you fucked this up. I _hate_ you!" She pushed me back into a hard wall and stormed upstairs to her room. Hazel stood up to follow, then glanced at me. Her eyes welled as she shook her head with a small scoff, and took off. I looked up and saw Jason brace himself, prepared to push Annabeth away from me if need be.

"I told you," she said, then took off after them, leaving me to drown in worry, fear, regret, and a feeling I've dealt with my whole life: loneliness.

* * *

 **GoodBYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! review pls bye**

 _ **~ TheKeeperGeek**_


	16. I'm Baaaaack (I think)

**Um, what the actual fuck guys? It's literally been TWO YEARS since _Possibly Noticed_ was born!**

 **Man, have we come (not actually all that) far!**

 **Also, I'm super, so incredibly sincerely sorry that I haven't posted since literally last year. Trust me, I feel like shit. I've had the worst writer's block and I've been so incredibly busy that I just couldn't bring myself to work on this because I've gotten so frustrated every time I looked at the next chapter. I am truly very sorry for all of this, and I wish I could've calmed my lame ass down and just focused. There's been a looot of shit going on in my life and it's been pretty hard to deal with. Some of you guys have been PMing me and I haven't been answering and for that I feel even worse!**

 **I promise I'm not ignoring you guys- it's just been a little pissy this year. I'm getting/doing a lot better, so I'm gonna try really hard to get this next chapter out soon. I'm tryna get my inspo back, and I think I'm getting there.**

 **Anyway, just wanted to let you know I'm not dead, and thank you guys for being so sweet and concerned. It really means a lot.**

 **High school is beating my ass with a bat, y'all.**

 **Love each and every one of you guys so much!**

 _ **~TheKeeperGeek**_


	17. Fifteen- Twenty-One Questions?

**Ay. You there. I see you over there. I want you to come here. And read my new chapter. Yeahhhhhh!**

 **Oh, hello. Did you want to continue? Oh, okay. Have fun!**

 **BTW: For those of you who had started reading this story earlier on and recognize this title, this is pretty much a repeat of the old Twenty-One Questions? and will sound a lot like it with very similar if not the same diction and/or phrases. If that doesn't sound familiar, then don't you worry about it!**

* * *

 ** _SHOUT OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUTTTSS!:_**

Holy Guacamole! Ya know, you're kinda super awesome:

~ **OminousAnonymous** (following _Possibly Noticed_ and has a super cool pen name)

~ **PJOIsDaBest** (following/favoriting _Possibly Noticed_ and following/favoriting lil' ole me and also having a super cool pen name)

~ **Percabeth forever1** (following/favoriting _Possibly Noticed_ and simply stating facts)

~ **amazing4ever** (following _Possibly Noticed_ and bc yes you are amazing 4 ever)

* * *

 **Disclaimer :**

A: Um, why am I here early again?

Me: Because, Annabeth, I need you.

A: *raises eyebrows*... uh huh. For what, exactly?

Me: To read my disclaimer!

A: That's it? Couldn't I have come, I don't know, like... on time? And done it in three minutes?

Me: No can do, sister. We need to prep you for this next one. *hands her the script*

A: Um, okay. P-

Me: WAIT! They mustn't know my name! What are you, crazy?

A: Okay! Jeez, sorry! _This author_ doesn't own PJO or HoO or any of their characters. Am I done?

Me: Yep! Now you can head to the mental preparation room. It's down that hall.

A: Wait, what? _Mental_ preparation room? What are you going to do to me? *is led off by guards* Hello?

Me: Sorry, sweetie. It has to be this way. But don't worry. It won't necessarily be happening to _you_... MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

* * *

 ** _Annabeth's P.O.V_**

Yeah, no.

Don't really know why I agreed to the whole 'party at the penthouse' idea, especially first. Maybe it was wanting to feel cool, or fit in. Maybe it was wanting to prove I wasn't as boring and as- how should I phrase this?- nerdy as they all thought I was. And maybe- just maybe- it was me internally trying to piss off my mother. Yeah, probably that last one. Whatever the motivation behind my stupid antics, I really, really hated them the next morning.

When I woke up, the level of disgust that washed over me knocked me back on to the couch with a groan. It took all the will power I could conjure up to peel myself off of the couch and wobble upstairs to my room. The light was on and the bed was in ruins, the sheets haywire and the pillows everywhere. I could feel my face flush. The theories endlessly floated through my mind while they slowly drew more heat to my face.

Stumbling through a nightmare, I dragged myself to my closet to change out of the itchy clothes I had on. I stared mindlessly at three different pairs of joggers, not really even able to see through the tunnels passing over my eyes. I finally decided that there definitely was a pair that was black with a white stripe on each side; I picked those to be safe. I also went for a white crop that had _I'm Dealing_ written on it in black script. It matched my mood pretty well, along with the pants and Adidas I decided to wear.

I didn't really know how to deal with hangovers, so I went with what I knew was cleansing and healthy. I washed my face gently and swished mouthwash, brushing out my hair carefully and loosely braiding it to the side. I only used a little bit of concealer and an eyebrow pencil, thinking that making myself look better will make myself feel a little better. Usually, it does. Today, not so much.

I looked in the mirror. My skin looked splotchy and red, and my hair was fluffy as a baby bunny. I had a sickly look to my appearance, my eyes slightly bloodshot and watery, and my lips looked bruised and red. I smeared chap stick all over my mouth, wincing at the sudden pains when I pressed down too hard. I also swallowed about four Advil pills, hoping it would at least dull the endless sawing into my brain. Not that much help, either...

 _My phone,_ I thought rather brilliantly. _I could probably look up a cure to this... this... I don't know. Evil... headache. Ugh, even my vocabulary was affected!_

I searched my room as many times as I could, which wasn't very many, finally giving up and trudging back downstairs. As I descended, I noticed a figure curled in the fetal position on the stairs. _Uncomfortable,_ I thought. _But okay._ As I got closer, I saw silky, dark hair tangled in massive knots. _Oh. My. God. Reyna, poor thing!_

Once I reached her, I took in what I must of looked like last night and suddenly felt a little faint. She was sweating like a pig, drooling a bit, and crying in her sleep. Why she was crying, I had no clue, but my heart fell for seeing her like this. I grabbed a blanket from where I was sleeping, careful not to wake a dreaming Piper, and spread it over Reyna in an attempt to make her feel more comfortable. I knew it wouldn't really help, but it's the thought that counts, right?

My hunt for my cell continued until I came across a small. metal square underneath a couch cushion. _Yes! Finally!_ With a breath of relief, I held the power button to turn it on. Naturally- just my luck!- it was dead. Perfect! Absolutely fucking amazing.

I was about to give up and go back to sleep when I saw Piper clutching a marble covered object. I looked around, as if I was expecting someone to walk out and give me an answer. I simply shrugged and slowly removed the phone from Piper's grip. I opened it and looked up a hangover cure. _Hmm, Prairie Oyster? Ew, that's disgusting. Oh, well._

I knew I was going to need some of the ingredients since we shouldn't have had a completely stocked fridge, but I did _not_ expect the fridge to be completely empty. They could completely decorate every room of the house, yet they couldn't buy us basic essentials? Oh, and we also didn't have any glassware. Great, right?

I barely managed to catch the cabinet before it slammed shut, forgetting I might've woken my friends. I waited in pain for a while, my head and face throbbing, until I slowly came to the realization that I actually had to leave the penthouse to buy our ingredients. Even though it was stifled, my groan seemed to echo throughout the kitchen.

I clutched my head, trying to summon the last bit of strength I had, forcing the words _I can do this, I can do this_ into my mind. I took in a deep breath, relaxed my face, and set my jaw. _Well, there's a first time for everything!_

I grabbed my small purse that hung from a rack by the elevator and dug through it to find a pair of huge sunglasses. I slid them on my face and pushed the phone inside, zipped the purse, and slunk into the elevator.

In case you don't know, New York City traffic is the absolute _worst._ So multiply the lights and noise by ten, and you got a special hungover morning in the city that never sleeps. You also get a very pissed Annabeth, which the poor souls on East 96th street got a good taste of.

"You have got to be SHITTING ME RIGHT NOW!" I scream to no one and everyone. I felt multiple eyes on me, all judging my outburst with disgusted sneers. A small trickle of shame raised blood to my cheeks, but I cleared my throat and waited for a taxi. Shortly after, I grabbed one and asked for the nearest CVS. The ride itself was as miserable as the wait.

I swam out of the cab and into the store, pulling up the list on Piper's phone as I trudged inside. Besides a mother and two young children, I was the only one here. I combed through the isles in a desperate search for the items to return home as quick as I possibly could. I hear the telltale _swish_ of the slide doors opening, alert the staff that someone was coming in. I kept my head down, trying not to get distracted.

Just as I picked up tobacco, I felt a hand wrap around my waist. I jumped as a deep voice whispers in my ear. "Hey, pretty girl."

I whip my head around and my sunglasses flew off my face. I squint to see a smirking Percy.

"Jesus, Perce, you scared me." He held his hands up in mock surrender.

"Sorry, Beth," he blankly apologized. "Didn't realize I had that affect on you, too." His face was a mix between triumphant smile and... I almost wanted to say lust...

 _What the hell?_ I thought. Percy never talked to me that way. It just wasn't our relationship. That was more of Reyna and Markus' thing. Our relationship was built on awkward conversations and smart ass remarks, so when he walks over to me in a random CVS, wraps his arm around my waist, and- dare I say- flirts with me, I became extremely concerned.

"Um, dream on," I say, hoping it hides my confusion. I go back to my shopping, heading towards the refrigerators.

"Well, at least I know one thing about you," he says, following me like a puppy.

"And what's that?" I asked, my confusion becoming apparent. "You know many things about me. Why is this one so much more obvious?"

"Because of this." He pulls me to him and presses his lips to mine. Startled, I dropped my basket. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders as he kissed me, getting lost in the moment and not realizing what the hell I was doing. Soon enough, I came to that realization and pushed him away, my lips pulsating with a sudden pain.

"What the hell was that?" I asked, shaking my head. He gave me a blank stare.

"Um, what? You were totally fine... oh damn. Do you not remember anything from last night?"

My face flooded with heat. Remember last night? Of course not! I was too drunk to function properly! Suddenly I flashed back to my messy bed that I didn't sleep in. Oh, sweet Jesus...

I started to hyperventilate, eyes going wide and mind suddenly racing. "Oh God. Did- did we... uh..." I motioned between us with my hand. "You know..."

"No! No, no. God, Annabeth, _no._ " I sighed a breath of relief when we became as flustered as I was. "Do you seriously think I would do that?"

I felt a little guilty for implying that. "No, of course not. I just... I don't know. I'm so confused. And tired. And sick." Concern washed over Percy's face.

"I'm so sorry, Annabeth. I really don't get drunk easy. Never have." He rubbed his neck as I crossed my arms and raised my eyebrow. "So I didn't realize how I could've hurt you. I've never really got what it's like to not to know what I'm doing." He looked at me with desperate eyes. "Please forgive me?"

I smiled. "Of course. It's not your fault. I should've watched how much I drank."

"Well, us aggressively making out was not _your_ fault-"

"Wait, excuse me?"

"Ooh," he winced. "Probably shouldn't have mentioned that one?"

He really shouldn't have. I felt like my lungs were collapsing. "Making out? Like, in front of everyone?"

"Yes? And you, uh, might have told everyone that there was a very good chance that you would give it to me last night..."

"WHAT?" I yelled. The mother in the isle over shot me a startled look. I gave her a sorry glance and turned my attention back to Percy. "What?"

"If you want a good side, that little message got all the others to back off."

"Wait, 'all the others?'"

"Yeah. There was practically a line of guys waiting to see if they could get in your-"

"Okay! That's enough!" At that point, I wasn't sure if I was a human or a tomato.

"Yeah. Again, I feel terrible. I really am sorry." His face lit up. "Let me make it up to you? We could go get breakfast, if you want."

It was hard to say no. He looked like an excited little boy, desperately trying to please a girl. The thought of that expression changing compelled me to agree. Also, I was starving and was so down for free breakfast.

"As long as we can go to Chic-fil-a, I'm down," I smiled. He pumped his arm in the air, causing me to giggle. He flashed me a smile and held out his arm.

"M'lady?" I hooked my arm in his.

"M'lord." With that we paid for our items and walked towards the door with a little more spring in our step.

"I forgot to ask," I started as I slid in Percy's Porsche. "Why are you here?"

"Same as you." He held up the plastic bag that held his purchases. "Hangover cure."

"Ah." The other question I had I didn't ask. I didn't want to make it uncomfortable, and if the answer was what I hoped it was, I'd feel terrible. But if he was comfortable with walking up to me and kissing me in public- or anywhere for that matter- what did that mean? I quickly pushed the thought out of my head, knowing it was unimportant.

We drove to Chic-fil-a, somewhat of an awkwardness hanging in the air. I didn't really know what to say to him, and I guess he didn't know what to say to me. After last night, I wasn't sure what kind of conversation we would have. As we pulled up to the restaurant, Percy quickly put together a disgusting concoction to help with the hangover when he parked. I somehow managed to choke it down after multiple complaints. The horrible, slimy... I don't even think I can call it a drink... somehow made a difference in my headache.

"That shit was terrible, Perce," I groaned as I rolled out of the car.

"Well, don't get drunk next time." I mocked the dumb ass as we walked (more like slunk) into Chic-fil-a.

The lady at the register took our orders and I slid miserably into a booth. Percy sat across from me with a sympathetic expression on his face.

"Hopefully food will make you feel a little bit better," he said, grabbing my hand. I put my head down on the table and groaned.

"I'm literally the dumbest person ever," I moped.

"No, Annabeth, you're not." I set my chin on my head and looked up at him. "Everyone makes mistakes- even smart people." I scoffed. "What? It's true!"

"'Smart people' don't drink themselves into a mindless oblivion..."

"Eh, some do." I raise my brows. "I mean, Van Gogh was an alcoholic, right? And so was Stephen King. And they were some of the most famous people in their craft in that time period. So even big shot's can, as you put so nicely, drink themselves into oblivion."

I simply stared at him. How did he know this about Van Gogh and King? "Jeez, I'm not all that stupid, Wise Girl- I know things!"

"I know you do," I said quickly. "And you're not stupid at all. I just didn't know you were interested in famous scholars."

"Eh, I'm not. I just remember your history project about the faults of famous people. That was really thourough, by the way."

"Thank you. And you do realize you just compared me to alcoholics, right?"

Percy's eyes grew wide with recognition as a burst into laughter. "Oh, god. I'm so sorry, I didn't mean it-"

"Perce, it's really fine. I know what you meant." He let out a breath of relief.

"Thanks." Our food came to our table, and I truly didn't think I smelled anything so heavenly before in my life. When the tray was set down by our waiter, I greedily grabbed my twelve-piece chicken nuggets and fries, along with a strawberry milkshake. I quickly popped a nugget in my mouth, sighing with content as the amazingness hit my taste buds.

"I love fried food," I mumbled into my milkshake. "It truly is the greatest thing ever invented."

"I one hundred percent agree with you, Miss Chase," Percy said as he shoved numerous fries in his mouth. His eyes rolled back in his head as he took a bite of his chicken burger. I grabbed his chocolate milkshake for a sip as he made a wounded face.

"What was that for?" He said, grabbing my milkshake all the same.

"Okay, twenty-one questions," I announced, completely ignoring the accusation. "Me first. Tea or coffee?"

"Uh, neither. They're both nasty."

"Wrong answer. Coffee. Next! Netflix or Hulu?"

"Netflix all the way!" He said, pushing the last piece of his burger in his mouth. "Netflix is so much better."

"Ew, Perce. Can you chew with your mouth shut?"

"Not if you want me to keep answering. Fourth question?"

"Um, fourth? I only asked two."

"Nope. You just asked if I could chew with my mouth shut."

"That doesn't count!"

"Yeah, it does."

"Does not."

"Does too."

"Does not!"

"Does too!"

"Does NOT!"

"Does TOO!"

It went on like this for a while, and while I did know most of the answers, there were a few I was surprised by.

"Wait, what? There is no way you could possibly mean that."

"Oh, yes, Percy. I sincerely mean that."

"Are you _actually_ nuts?"

"I don't know. Are you _actually_ a moron?"

"Hey!"

"You deserved it."

"I did not. And I certainly didn't deserve it from a pancake hater."

"I don't _hate_ pancakes. Waffles are just better!"

"No. Uh uh. Wrong. EHH. Incorrect. No way. Pancakes will always be better than waffles."

"In your sorry little dreams, Percy. In your sorry little dreams."

"I feel very attacked right now."

"I mean, it was your question."

"Yeah, true."

"Okay, last one from each of us. Here we go!" Percy drummed his fingers on the table. "If you could say anything in five words, what would you say?"

"Hmm..." he thought. "This is a good one, but I'm pretty sure I can get it out in three."

I sat back in the booth. "Alright, big shot. Let's here it, then." I tried to ignore the fact that, even though there were a lot of three word statements out there, two stuck out prominently in my head. I tried to force them out of my head. No use in giving myself false hope.

He was quiet for a little bit and I thought he was preparing for a statement worthy of a soap opera.

"Come on, drama queen. Just tell me. No need for the over-the-top performance."

He looked up in a daze. "Oh, yeah. Sorry." Concern immediately flooded me as I reached for his hand.

"Hey, Perce. You okay?"

"Yeah," he smiled. Suddenly, his face twisted in pain. "No..." He hung his head low.

"Hey, hey, hey. What's wrong?" I moved over to sit by him and wrapped my arm around his shoulders. "You can tell me anything, you know that."

"Yeah, I know." He managed a smirk and said, "You're always there for me, Wise Girl."

"I never won't be," I assured him. "What's going on?"

"Well, I _was_ gonna say something pretty damn hilarious..." He trailed off when he saw the 'are you serious' look I was giving him. "Fine." He cleared his throat several times before he looked up at me with watery eyes and said the last thing I thought he was going to say.

"Mom is sick."

My heart dropped. Sally? Sick? I don't think I remember her being sick in my entire life.

"Oh my god. How sick?"

He winced and sucked in a breath between his teeth. "Um... she has stage two ductal carcinoma." I gave him a confused look; I never did well with any sort of medical terms. He had to clear his throat again, and this time he said in an even quieter voice:

"Breast cancer."

Oh my god.

No.

"Oh my god, Perce... I- I don't... holy shit. I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault. I guess it's no one's fault. But, um. The scary thing is... uh. She's pregnant." My eyes widened. This couldn't be right. This woman that I've known for seven years, who was basically a second mom to me, had _cancer?_ That can't be right. She never gets sick. Not once have I ever seen her sick. And she's pregnant? If there wasn't the cancer, then I'd be jumping for joy. Percy's gonna have a little brother or sister! But...

"Annabeth, please say something." I looked over to Percy. He looked tired, and extremely upset.

"I mean, damn Percy. What do you want me to say?" I started to choke up. _Shit, I can't cry. That's not fair._

I gently turned his head towards me. "Hey, look at me." When he did, his eyes were so pained that I couldn't help pulling him in for a hug. I squeezed him as tight as I could and said, "Your mom is one of the strongest people I know. She raised you all by herself, owns the coolest candy shop in Manhattan, and payed off every single debt she owed. She practically helped raise me, too. Whenever I was sad or felt like I did something wrong, she always gave me a smile and said, 'Little girl, you can do anything you ever set your mind on. Keep going, and hold your head up high.'"

My voice cracked as I pulled away from him with teary eyes. He was crying, which was a little bit of a surprise for me. Percy never cries, at least not around me. I wiped a tear from his cheek. "You have so much of her in you. You're kind, silly, brave, caring, and yes, very smart." He scoffed. "Jackson, never say that you're dumb. Ever. Everyone has their own kind of smart; yours is just different from mine. You're also so strong. I think this is literally the first time I've seen you cry!" We both sadly chuckled.

I grabbed his hand. "She's going to be just fine. I promise. So is your baby brother or sister. And so are you." I smiled at him. "'Cause you have me. I mean, I guess they boys and girls, too."

"Thanks, Annie." He set his head on my shoulder and sighed.

"I'll let it pass. Just this once." I felt him smile against my shoulder. _It was going to be okay,_ I thought. _It had to be okay._

* * *

We were back at the pent, and Piper and Jason just left with all the keys. Judging by the look on everybody's faces, something was probably gonna get thrown. Reyna was glaring at Markus, Hazel was unemotionally staring at Frank, and Calypso and Leo were strangely eyeing each other. I squeezed Percy's hand and he squeezed mine back.

"So, uh, what are you doing here?" Reyna asked, crossing her arms. The guys looked awkwardly between each other.

"Uh," Markus started, shuffling his feet. "We came to see if you needed help picking up, but..." He looked around. "Guess not." His gaze focused back on Reyna. "Listen, Rey, can we talk?"

"Yeah, sure. Talk away. I'll listen." She gave him a stern look, arms still crossed. "That is, if I haven't passed up the opportunity."

Markus rolled his eyes. "Could you please stop being so petty?" She gave him an 'are you kidding me?' look.

"Well, since you asked so fucking nicely." She storms up to him and he nervously backed up a few steps. "I cannot believe you! Why would you even consider saying that to me?" She grabbed a few pillows off the couch and threw one at him. "Do you seriously expect me to just forget about it? You can't actually think-" she threw another pillow- "that would _ever-_ " another pillow thrown- "forget something like that?" She threw her last pillow, the only one Markus hadn't dodged.

"Reyna, I was drunk!"

"All the worse!" She stalked up to him until they were almost nose-to-nose. "All the fucking worse, Markus. That was so uncalled for. You could have chose to say a shit ton of other things, but no. You had to bring up only the single most painful memory of my fucking life!" She pushed him backwards.

"Reyna, stop," Frank said, trying to step between them and grabbing his sister's hands. "Just calm down."

"Calm down?" Reyna yelled. "Are you shitting me, Frank?"

"He didn't mean it- whatever he said!"

"You aren't exactly one to talk, Frank," Hazel said from the couch, her glare as frozen as it was when we first walked in.

He sighed. "Hazel, I tried to apologize-"

"And for the same reasons Markus did? You're only sorry because it helps your case!" Hazel threw her hands up. "You guys are unbelievable."

"Unbelivable?" Markus said. "Are you kidding, Hazel."

She sneered at Markus. "Yeah, Markus, because you can see me laughing my ass off right now."

"Guys," Calypso piped up from the couch. "Maybe we should just talk-"

"NO!" They all yelled at her in unison.

"Reyna it was a fucking mistake. Please, can we just move on?"

"Move on?" she screeched. "I'll show you how I'll move on- we're fucking over!" She shoved him back into the side table and he bumped the vase off. It fell to the floor, shattering to a thousand pieces. I gasped, and Percy pulled me away from the mess.

"Holy shit!" I yelped. I looked between the girls, all of our eyes wide. "Apollo's gonna kill us..."

"Okay, guys," Leo finally intervened. He moved away from the couch and slightly in front of us. "You should probably go."

"Best idea I've heard all fucking day," Hazel said. She had angry tears pooling in her eyes. She looked at Frank dead in the eyes. "Get out."

"Wait, Reyna," Markus said as she began to walk up the stairs. He pushed passed Leo and tried to follow her. "Baby, please. Please don't do this-"

"You did this to yourself," she whirled on him. She was crying, hard. "You did this all on your own, Markus McLean. Get out of my house." She turned around and continued upstairs. I let go of Percy's hand and walked over to Markus, who had tears of his own in his eye. I put my hand on his shoulder and squeezed his hand.

"I'll talk to her, Mark," I said in a soft voice. "There's no way she meant-"

"You heard what she said," he barked, and threw my hands off of him. He glared around the room. "Which one of you did it? Huh?" We were all silent. "There's no way she would've done that to me on her own. Which one of you told her to do it?" He looked me in the eyes. I almost pissed my pants- he looked like he was on the verge of murder. The rage in his eyes... I hadn't seen that look in a very long time. "Was it you, Annabeth? Did you do this to me? Huh?" His voice raised to a yell as he walked closer to me as I backed up.

"No! Of course not, Mark! I would never- none of us would ever-"

"Bullshit!" He yelled, and I flinched away. Leo and Percy ran over to us- Percy grabbed me and Leo grabbed Markus.

"Chill, bro-" Leo started.

"Get your fucking hands off of me!" He threw Leo to the ground. Suddenly there was a slap, and I looked up from Percy to see Markus holding his cheek. Suddenly, Reyna grabbed his face and kissed him. He wrapped his arms around her and hers around him. Slowly, she walked him towards the elevator, where the other guys were waiting.

"I'll text you later," Percy said in my ear. I nod.

"See you." He walked in to the elevator before Reyna gently pushed Markus inside. Tears streamed down her cheek as she said, "Go," in a pathetic voice.

"Reyna..." Markus said, and the elevator doors shut. She stood there hopelessly for a few moments, then punched the elevator.

"Ow, fuck!" Reyna yelled. I ran over to her and grabbed her trembling shoulders. Hazel held her other side as Calypso moved what was left of the pillows on the couch out of the way.

"I'll go get you some water," Leo mumbled, and walked into the kitchen rubbing his neck.

I wiped tears away from Reyna's eyes. "Do you want to talk about it?" Cal handed her a few tissues as Leo came back with her water. She lightly sipped and blotted her eyes as we held her and waited for her answer.

"Um, last night, we were kissing," she started.

"No dip," Hazel said. We all shot her a look. "Sorry, sorry..."

"Anyways, he...um... asked if we wanted to go upstairs." My eyes widened as I tried to take in what she was saying. Hazel tried to say something, but all that came out was some sort of wheezing. Calypso looked down at her hands, and Leo sat on the ottoman with a small smirk on his face.

"Oh, my god," I finally said. I looked at my best friend, who was blushing mad. "Well?"

"Um, I told him that I didn't want my first time to be like this."

"And he didn't take that well?" Calypso asked, shocked.

"He, um, said that..." she trailed off mid-sentence to clear her throat.

"He said?" I carefully urged her.

"... he said that it was a little too late for that." My mouth flew open.

"He said _what?_ " I yelled. She flinched and a few more tears rolled down her face. Hazel suddenly stood up and marched to the elevator.

"Wait, Hazel, no." Peach turned.

"That little fucktard will _not_ get away with saying that to you!" She repeatedly pushed the down button.

"Haze, please don't," Rey said weakly. She sighed and sat back down on the couch, cuddling into me and Calypso. "It's not worth it."

"Is it crude to ask what happened?" Leo asked in a quiet voice.

"A little-" I started.

"It's fine, A." Reyna sat up a little bit to look at Leo. "My biological father used to assault me and my sister. The day I last saw him, we were in court and he was being sent away for 30 years to federal prison and he would be in rehab for the rest of his life." Leo's face dropped in twenty seconds flat.

"Holy shit. I'm so sorry, Rey."

"It's not your fault." We were quiet for a second until Hazel spoke up.

"Well, I accidentally asked Frank out and might've had the same intentions as Markus... until he said we shouldn't make my mother's mistake. Which, for those of you who didn't know, was me."

Calypso and Leo's faces dropped even more, and they nearly touched the ground when I brought up my point. "Sally, Percy's mom- uh, she was basically my second mother- yeah, she's pregnant."

"That's awesome!" Hazel said behind tears. My eyes stung as I added the last part.

"But, she has stage two breast cancer." She gasped.

"Fuck. No..." Hazel cried.

"Yeah..."

Our silence could cut right as the elevators dinged. Reyna groaned under her breath as I look up, expecting the boys or just Markus. Instead, I saw Piper and jason with worried expressions on their faces. Their eyes widened as they took in the place; I couldn't blame them. A vase was broken. Flowers were scattered everywhere. Pillows were strewn across the floor. And Reyna and Hazel were crying their eyes out.

"Did you forget to throw the ceiling fan, too, asshat?" Reyna whirled to snarl at the doors, and it died for a moment when she saw Piper. Pipes eyes widened and Rey's splotchy face turned red as even more tears streamed from her eyes. I got up from the couch to talk to my confused friend, nervus that something else was going to break out.

"Pipes, you really should've waited to come back-" I felt my body being pushed out of the way. I looked over to see Reyna in Piper's face. "This is _your_ fault, Piper." She jabbed a finger at her with a glare so hard I could tell she wanted to shrivel into a ball. "You have no idea how badly you fucked this up. I _hate_ you!" She pushed our friend into Jason and stormed upstairs to her room. Hazel got up to follower her, then glanced at us. Her eyes welled as she shook her head with a small scoff, and took off. I looked back at Piper and Jason; Piper looked scared out of her mind, and Jason looked confused as he grabbed her hand.

"I told you," I said in a sorry tone, then took off after them. I made it to the second story as I heard Calypso and Leo go over to them.

"What the hell did I do?" Piper said faintly, her voice breaking. Meanwhile, I silently prayed that the beginning of Changing Ways wasn't the bloody end.

* * *

Lol, I'm a terrible person. And this chapter was depressing afffffffffffffff.

 _ **~ TheKeeperGeek**_


	18. Sixteen- The Name of the Game

**Wait, what? Did... did I update at a decent time? WhOa WhAt Is HaPpEnInG tO tHe WoRlD?**

 **(lol i got a major head start cuz i was sick like twice so...)**

* * *

 ** _SHOUT OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUTTTSS!:_**

~ **Reader Of The Shadows** for favoriting _Possibly Noticed!_

 **Kushielsz** for following _Possibly Noticed!_

ALL OF Y'ALL ARE INCREDIBLE AND AMAZING HUMAN BEANS AND I LOVE YA SOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUUUUUUUUUUUUUHH!

* * *

 **Disclaimer :**

I literally don't know how to say this... it's really difficult for me to say, actually... but... you guys are all... fictional characters...

 **All:** *gasp*

 **Girls:** eXcUsE mE?

 **Guys:** Wait, what? Explain!

 **Me:** Well, you see, you're all owned by a man named Rick Riordan and apart of the Heroes of Olympus series. Percy and Annabeth are in the series before that, called Percy Jackson and the Olympians. Except Markus. I made him up myself.

 **Girls:** Wait. Someone is allowed to own us? Uh-uh.

 **Leo:** Do I have a ton of hot, screaming fans?

 **Markus:** Hold up- why am I different than everybody else?

 **Jason:** And why does Percy have his own book series?

 **Percy:** I think not, thots. NOBODY owns Persassy *flips on shades and strikes pose*

 **Annabeth:** *facepalm*

* * *

 ** _Reyna's P.O.V_**

I slammed the door to my room shut and tore off the dress I was still in. "Stupid dress," I muttered to myself as I threw it into my laundry hamper. I ripped my pajamas off of a hanger, which broke. "Are you shitting me?" I threw it across the room, exasperated. "Stupid hanger." I pulled on the clothes and knocked all my pillows off my bed. I crawled under the sheets to try and sleep the pain away, but it was too damn bright. I groaned and whipped the covers off to close the curtains. "Stupid curtains." I dove back in bed and closed my eyes. _There, nice and dark._ But now it was too quiet. I groaned louder and grabbed my phone from off the nightstand. I went to my Spotify playlist titled, 'Jams' and shuffled through the songs. Nothing was not annoying. "Stupid music!" I wound up throwing my phone across the room and wrapping myself tighter in my sheets. A tear leaked from my eye and dropped onto my pillow. "Stupid life..."

I silently cried as the darkness and silence of my room drowned me. It felt like I laid there for eternity until I heard my door open. I rolled my eyes and wiped my cheeks. "Go away, Annabeth."

"It's not Annabeth," another voice said. I sat up and saw a girl with wavy caramel hair cautiously walking towards me. Her dark chocolate eyes looked concerned as she made it over to where I was in the bed. She crouched down so she see where I reburied myself in the quilt. She looked me in the eyes, and I sighed as I flicked off the blankets. "Hey, there you are! I thought I lost you," she quietly joked.

I gave her a sad smile that shortly crumbled. I face planted into my pillows and rolled over so she could get in the bed. She walked over to my closet and put on a pair of black sweat pants and a matching sports bra, and took off her black mini dress. After she threw her hair in a messy bun, she climbed beside me in the bed. We just kind of awkwardly looked at each other for a little, until she spoke.

"You know, Piper's downstairs recovering from an anxiety attack..."

"What?!" I threw the covers off and started towards the door. It slowly came to me that I might've been the reason. My chest exploded with guilt. I stopped with my hand on the door handle. "It was because of what I said, wasn't it?" Even though I couldn't see her, I knew that Calypso had hesitantly nodded. "Ugh, why am I such an asshole?"

"Rey, you're not an asshole," she said as I flopped back on the bed. "You're just hurt. She was an easy target, so you put the blame on her."

"If this is supposed to make me feel better," I mumbled against the pillow, "it's not working."

"It's not necessarily aimed towards that, but if you apologize then I'm sure you'll feel better."

I scoffed and pushed myself to my elbows. "You guys, of all people, know how much I hate apologizing. Like, I literally don't know how."

She smirked at me. "Well, she is one of your best friends. Either way, you're going to work it out. I just think that you should make the first move. She's probably gonna try to avoid you until you talk to her first. She doesn't want to get in your space. She also gave herself a fucking anxiety attack thinking about what she did wrong and if you guys were ever gonna forgive her. Leo's taking care of her downstairs, so you can go whenever you want. Just listen to each other."

I thought for a minute. Pipes hasn't had an anxiety attack in who knows when? She's usually a super chill person. Yeah, I definitely need to apologize. I smile at my friend. "Thanks, Callie."

"Of course." She pulls me into a hug, and I wrap my arms around her.

"So," I ask when we pulled apart. "Leo, huh?"

She started blushing mad. "I guess..."

"What do you mean, 'you guess?' You slept with him, girl!"

"Uh, not necessarily by choice!" She slowly sunk under the covers.

"Why're you so embarrassed? It's okay; I know you've slept with people before. No judgment here. Hell, I was considering it last night!" Calypso winced as I talked, and I suddenly got the message. "Wait. Whoa, whoa, whoa!" I pushed the covers off in alarm, eyes wide. "Are you- were you..."

She nodded, red as a strawberry. "Yeah. I'm a virgin... or, at least was."

I gaped at her. She was a virgin... she was a virgin? What the hell...

"You were a virgin?" I whisper-yelled.

"I was a virgin," she sighed. My mouth dropped. Oh, my good God. I looked at her with sympathy. Poor thing...

"I'm so sorry, Cal. That could _not_ have been the way you wanted it to be."

"No, it wasn't ideal, but at least it wasn't terrible." I looked at her, a new shock in my eyes.

"Wow, Uh, okay." She shrugged, face slightly less red. "So you're saying it was good?"

"I guess..." She walked over to my closet and pulled out a short checkered tee. "I mean, I don't have anything to compare it to but," she leaned against the door frame with a small smile on her face, "he was nice. And gentle."

"So it didn't hurt?" I asked.

"Oh, don't get me wrong. It hurt. Especially when he-"

"Okay! No more! No more, please! My innocent ears! La la la la laaa!" I covered my ears and tried to get that disgusting mental image out of my head as Calypso laughed.

"Well then, I get to ask why you were asking so many questions. Reconsidering last night?" She asked with raised eyebrows.

"Pfft, no! Why would I be? I would've totally regretted it afterwards! I need time, lots of time. Speaking of, I think we've spent enough time up here. I should go apologize to Piper now." I rush out of the room as Calypso cackles behind me. When I make it to the stairs, I see Piper shaking on the couch with Leo sitting by her. "On second thought," I mutter under my breath, and turn around to see Cal standing behind me, arms crossed. "Fine," I grumbled, and made my way to the living room.

When I got to the final stair, my heart was pounding hard in my chest. My feet walked me to the couch by Piper and Leo, and I stopped short. Leo looked up at me, and then Piper did. She was still shaking a little bit and had tear marks on her face. Her eyes widened when she saw me and she stood up.

"Hey, Pipes. Um, look. I didn't mean what I said. It wasn't your fault, none of it was. And I definitely do not hate you. I could never hate you. I'm... I'm so-" I was cut off my a tight hug. I let out a sigh of relief and wrapped my arms around her.

"Apology accepted," she said, and let go. "But I'm so sorry, Rey. I didn't even think about how it could go wrong. I just kinda assumed that you would talk everything out and it would all be okay again!"

"Hey, you remember what my mom told me about assuming things?" She shook her head. "She always said: assuming makes an ass of you and me." We both giggled at my bluntness. "I guess that's what kinda happened here. But I'm not mad, Pipes." I held my arms out. "Besties?"

She smiled and put her hands in mine. "Besties." I pulled her in for another hug. "Love you, Rey."

"Love you too, Pipes."

"Well, thank god y'all made up!" Leo said. "Sorry to leave on such short notice, but Apollo's wondering where the hell I am, so I'm gonna make up some shit and try to get y'all out from under the bus." We both walked over to him and gave him a hug.

"We love you, Leo!" We said in sync.

He chuckled. "Love you too!" He pulled away and gave us a short little bow. He looked over to Calypso, who was watching us with a smile. "I, uh, guess I'll see you later then."

"Yeah," she said, a small smile on her face. "See you." Leo smiled a bit as he walked into the elevator. He gave her a little wave, and she waved back. The doors shut slowly.

"What the hell was I thinking?" Leo yelled from inside the elevator. We all looked at each other and laughed off our little asses.

"So, Callie," Piper started. "Leo, huh?"

"Oh my God- not again!" She fell on the couch with her hands covering her face. Piper raised her eyebrows.

"Not again?" A thought passed through my mind.

"Holy shit, Piper- Calypso was a virgin!"

"Reyna!" Calypso whined, mortified. Piper's eyes shot to the top of her head. "What the fuck?"

"What the fuck indeed, you little hussy!" Piper exclaimed. She climbed on the couch and tackled our friend. "Your first time was with a complete and utter stranger while you were drunk?"

Calypso buried her arms in her head. "Maybe?"

"Oh. My. Sweet baby Jesus." Piper pretended to faint on Cal's back, which gave me the great idea to start shaking them both like a maniac.

"Oh, shit! Somebody! Help! My friend passed out from shocking news!"

"Oh, piss off!" Calypso smothered herself with a pillow. "What about Jason, huh? What about that hunk of your own?"

"He left after I calmed down. Also, did you just refer to Leo as a hunk?" When Calypso blushed and began to stutter, Piper pretended to pass out again.

"No!" I yelled dramatically. "Piper! Wake up! WAKE UUUPPP!"

"What the fuck?" Annabeth said as she and Hazel came running down the stairs. "What happened?"

"Oh, damn. Sorry, Annie! But, uh, nothing's wrong. We were being dramatic."

"Correction," Piper said, elbowing me, " _Reyna_ was being dramatic."

Annabeth put a hand on her chest. "You scared the shit out of me! I guess at least you made up?"

I grabbed Piper in a side hug. "Yeah, we're besties for the resties!" I look up at Hazel and motion for her to come join us.

She did, and Piper let go of me. "Haze, I'm so sorry-"

"You screwed up. You know that. But I still love you, so." She hugged her and rubbed her back. I'm glad it was a day for hugging. I like hugs.

"You know what we should do today?" I asked randomly.

"What should we do today, starting at 2:30?" Hazel asked.

"We should go shopping in Times Square!"

"Omg, yes please!" Calypso said. "I SO need a girl's day!"

"Me too!" Annabeth agreed.

"Well, it's settled. Take forty minutes, girls. Then we're outta here!" Piper exclaimed. I skipped up to my room, happy that the drama with the girls was over with.

"See," Cal said as she passed by my room. "I told you you'd feel better!"

"Thaaanks, Caaallieee!" I said annoyingly. I grabbed a white Bon Jovi tee that had tour dates on the back and high-waisted denim shorts from my closet. I curled my hair in waves and put on some light makeup: base, contour, brow, and a matte red lip. I grabbed a pair of black cattail sunglasses, black slip on vans, and a hipster hat to balance on my head. I was ready first, so I went to raid the fridge.

"Yoooo guys?" I called as I eyed the pantry. "We need to hit a Whole Foods or Trader Joe's, or something. There is _nothing_ in this house. Or pent. Whatever."

"Yeah, I saw that this morning," Annabeth said. She was dressed in a cute baby blue and white striped top and shorts combo with white sandals. Her hair was thrown up in a not-too-messy bun with subtle makeup. "Piper and I were talking upstairs. Apparently we're gonna have to go house-hunting soon."

"Well, that sounds exciting. And stressful," I said as I plopped myself in a chair at the dining table.

"Yeah, it does. But I'm not all that worried. Since we'll be on tour this summer, we won't really have to deal with that when we get back. By that time, I'll be eighteen, so I guess we'll buy it under my name." Oh, yeah. I completely forgot we were going on our Introduction tour. Dang, all of us on tour... that's kinda weird to think about.

"Uh oh. I smell stress. I thought this was supposed to be a girl's day!" Calypso complained as she came in. She changed out of her sweatpants and into black ripped jean shorts and slip on checkered vans to match her shirt. Her hair was braided over her shoulder and she had a little mascara and lip gloss on. "No more stress-y band stuff for today. Worry about that tomorrow. I can't understand it anyway." She slumped down in the seat beside me. "Is there actually no food?"

"No," I groaned. "Which is B.S because he decked out on our rooms but literally there is NO food in this house!"

"Wait- haven't you guys lived here since November of last year? And there's never been food at the house?" Annabeth and I looked at each other.

"Nah, we never really have. Usually we go out with someone to eat or order Postmates. Also, Hazel's mom loves to cook for us, and she make really yummy cajun dishes so," she shrugged. "I guess not."

"What 'cha talking about?" Piper asked, skipping into the kitchen. She had on a cropped black tank and light denim shorts on. A blue flannel was wrapped loosely around her waist, and she had black Doc Martin's on her feet. Sunglasses were pushed on top of her head and a small backpack was thrown over her shoulder.

"How we just realized that we never really ate a meal one of us has made here," Annabeth stated.

"Huh," Piper said, scooting herself on top of the kitchen island. "Yeah, I guess we haven't. Tells you how healthy we've been lately."

"I don't really know what's going on," Hazel said in her new yellow romper, "but I did catch the whole not eating healthy part. My b." She was also wearing flowery white sandals and she carried a small white cross-body purse. Her hair was thrown up in a ponytail and she had little makeup.

"Girl, we _all_ need to get our diets on track," Piper said, pointing to each of us. "Especially for the tour."

"I can't believe we're actually going to have our first tour!" Hazel said, wide eyed and smiling. "Like, wow. This time last year, I think I was at a dance camp looking at scholarship opportunities."

"Yeah, you're right," Annabeth snorted. "I was at a math camp at Duke."

"Wait," Calypso giggled. "Doesn't your secret tour start in, like, September?" We nodded. "You have forever, then!"

"Yeah, but it really needs to be a habit," Piper said. "We can stop by a Trader Joe's on the way back. Hey, Rey- is your car still here?"

"Oh my god! Yeah, I think so." I had completely forgotten that I had a car. As of recently, I've been driven everywhere. Did I even remember how to drive?

"Reyna, I swear to God if you crash the car, I'm going to kill you," Hazel threatened, voicing my concerns.

"Oh, Lord," Annabeth said looking towards the ceiling. "Please let Reyna remember how to drive!"

Piper chuckled nervously when I said, "Lighten up, will you? It's very unlikely that I don't remember how to drive..."

"Very unlikely?" Calypso asked, pulling a face. My face lit up like Christmas lights. "Maybe we should call your limo."

"No!" I got up and walked towards the stand near the elevator. "I can do it! It's muscle memory at this point. so got this, guys." I started to reach for the stand when something crunches under my foot. I picked up my shoe to see glass shattered beneath me. My eyes prickled with tears. _Shit, Reyna,_ I thought. _Really?_

I felt an arm wrap around my shoulders. Annabeth hugged me as Hazel grabbed the keys from the bowl. "Let's get out of here, Rey." She smiled at me. "We know what'll make you feel better."

* * *

"Oh my god, guys!" Calypso said between laughs. "You're gonna get us kicked out!"

She wasn't wrong. It was definitely a possibility since Hazel and Piper were running around a Super Target dressed in adult-sized minion onesies, demanding Annabeth and I push them around in shopping carts. Currently, we were in the middle of a race: who could make it from one end of the store to the other fastest.

We had finished all of our shopping, tossing the numerous colorful bags into the trunk of my car. Turns out I remembered how to drive... for the most part. The only struggle I had was pulling out of the parking space I was wedged into. It was Hazel's fault though- the only reason I didn't see the car was because she was yelling at me the whole time!

Oh, and the paps caught us. Turns out, both Taylor Swift and Priyanka Chopra were close to Time Square. We were walking out of Forever 21, talking about this outrageous dress, when the first one spotted us. It didn't take long for the others to follow suit and run from all directions to get a good picture of us on our day off. Calypso was confused, but we had performed this little show before. We walked briskly in the direction of my car, smiling and waving towards the cameras. Some of the paps asked how we were, which was nice, but some of them were all _"Hey, no! Over here! Over here! Look at me!"_ Being the petty little hoe I am, I ignored them.

We made it to the car, threw our stuff in the back, and decided that we'd better wrap up this shopping day. So here we are, at a Super Target, looking for a new vase and some groceries. Only, we got a little side tracked. Calypso started filming us on her phone, laughing her ass off. I was tripping over my own two feet because I couldn't stop giggling.

"Reyna, pull yourself together!" Piper commanded from our cart, despite her wide smile. "We can't _lose_ to _them!_ We're better than that!"

"Hey!" Hazel yelled. "Offensive!"

"Don't worry, Peach," Annabeth said. "We'll be laughing when we wipe the floor with these losers."

"Ooh!" Calypso said. "A little spat going on here?" She moved the camera around us while announcing the rules of the game. "Alright, ladies. This is the moment you've been waiting for- the momentous race between the teams of Reyna and Piper, and Hazel and Annabeth. The name of the game is Cart Racing, and I'm your host, Calypso Titan. Now, girls, you need to be prepared for this- physically and mentally. It's a tough challenge, and it can be very emotional-"

"Just give us the rules, Caesar!" Hazel whined.

"Okay, fine. Jeez, I was getting into it. Anyways, the target- haha, get it? 'Cause we're in Target? No? Okay- is to get from one corner of the store to the other as fast as you possibly can. The moms- Annabeth and Reyna- have to shop along the way for toys and treats for their youngin's- Hazel and Piper. Each of them have a list of things they have to get. The kids will have to run out of the cart, grab the items, and hop back in and hurry to the next location. Currently, we're in the front of the store, near the food. Since we finished our grocery shopping, we'll meet near the home goods section in the middle of the store. Whoever comes back with all the items first, wins! Any questions?"

We all shake our heads as Calypso concentrates on the phone. "Yes, elizabeththebomb, we made this up."

"Wait, what?" Piper giggled. "Are you on a live?"

"Yeah, I signed into Hazel's account. Also, say hi to Taylor."

"Hi, Taylor!" We chorused.

"Okay, anyways! Are you girls ready?"

"Heck to the yeah!" I said, bracing myself.

"Moooom, I want some caaaandyyy!" Piper whined.

"Oh my god. I forgot how annoying kids were," I mumbled to myself.

"On your mark! Get set! GO!"

I pushed the cart with all my might and take off towards the toy section. "What's first on the list, Pipes?"

"Well, I really want to _not_ fall out of this cart," she said, firmly grasping onto the cart. "But second, pretty sure this says 'favorite childhood chocolate?'"

"Oh, that's easy! Reese's, for sure."

"Nah, girl. Twix are the shit."

"Fine, we'll get both." I came to a halt at the candy isle and Piper leaped out of the basket. She grabbed a handful of each candy and tossed it in the basket.

"It also says 'favorite childhood gummy?'"

We looked at each other. "Haribo bears," we said simultaneously. We each grabbed a few and added them to our pile. Piper threw herself back in the cart.

"Go, go, go!" She yelled, and I went, went, went. As I swerved a ten year old, Piper went live on her account as well. "Oh my god, guys. So, if you weren't watching Hazel's live or don't know what's going on at all, the girls are all doing a race. We gotta- frick, Reyna!" I accidentally turned a corner too sharp and almost threw her from the cart.

"Oh, god. I'm so sorry," I tried to apologize in a hurry. "What's on the list?"

"'Favorite childhood stuffed animal?'"

"Oof. Tough subject. What's yours?"

"Meh. Probably- oh, wait! It's definitely those stuffies that are also kind of like blankets? They're in the baby section. Go there! Anyways-" Piper explained the rules as I hurried to the baby section. We quickly picked up Piper's 'stuffies' and moved on to the next item. It's only when we got back to the food area for 'favorite childhood lunch' when- yeah, you guessed it- we ran into some trouble.

"Excuse me," an employee asked. "Ma'am, could you please get out of the cart and stop filming? I'm afraid it's against our policy."

"Oh," Piper said, pretending she didn't know any of this news. "I'm sorry, sir. But we're kind of in the middle of a game at the moment. You see, we're trying to get as many childhood favorites of ours as we can and get to the HomeGoods section of the store to see who won?" Piper went on about our game, sending him disarming smiles and harmless laughs to try and break his guard down. "So, if you wouldn't mind me squeezing by you to grab one of those Kid Cuisines-"

"Ma'am, I apologize, but I'm afraid I can't let you unless you turn off the camera and step out of the cart."

"Oh, of course. Give me a moment." She pressed the button on the side of her phone and slipped it into her pocket. I grabbed her hand as she flung her legs over the side and hopped out of our shopping cart. The employee stepped aside and allowed her to grab two Kid Cuisines before thanking us and walking away. We walked in the opposite direction and, once he was out of sight, continued our race. Piper crawled back in the basket with our lunches and I began to run towards our next destination. As much as I hate to admit it, I should've skipped going to the gym a lot less. I was exhausted!

"Run, Reyna! They're probably almost finished!"

"How much do we have left?"

"Five things." She whipped her phone back out of her pocket. "Haha, sorry guys. We're back."

"What the heck, Pipes. You didn't turn it off?"

"Nope. Ain't no man gonna tell me to turn my phone off 'cause he was in a bad mood!" The comments section blew up with comments like 'lmao y'all are savages' and 'yeah, you right piper!'

Our fun lasted three more stops. "Oh my god we're almost done!" I said with relief. At this point, I was sweating like a pig. I had to throw my hat into our cart with the goodies and throw my hair up because of how damp my hair was. Gross, I know.

"Are you calling me fat?" Piper accused me from her seat.

"Well, lets just say you definitely ate more pizza than you should have."

"Yeah, you right. We already talked- we need to fix our eating habits." And just as we careened down the next isle, our friendly employee guy stood in front of us with arms crossed.

"Well, well, well. Back at it, are we, ladies?" Piper dropped her phone in the basket and tried for another sweet smile.

"I am so sorry, sir. We'll stop immediately- I promise." I saw her quickly cross her fingers behind her back. I couldn't help but smile- Princess Piper, we used to say. Never wanted to do anything wrong and always got out of everything. Only, this time, her luck and charm was starting to run out.

"And yet, I don't believe you. I ran into your other friends playing the same game and gave them the same warning. Now that I can see you have no respect for rules, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

I gaped. Leave? Oh my god, were we actually getting kicked out of Target?

"But, sir-" Piper tried again, starting to hold her phone up just a little to catch this possible moment on camera.

"Nothing from you. I think you've tried to sweet talk me just a little bit too much today. I suggest gathering up your other trashy friends and leaving your carts by the front doors. Someone will take care of them. Would you like me to see you out?" He blinked with a petty attitude that made me want to deck him.

"No, thank you. I'm sure we can find a way out of this mess." I gave him a fake smile and pushed the cart towards him as Pipes hopped out. She shimmied out of her onesie and tossed it in the cart. "Sorry to be a disturbance towards you." I turned around, grabbing my hat, phone, and bag out of the cart and walking towards the doors. I desperately tried to hold in my laughter, and looking at Piper I could tell she was doing the same. She was now holding the phone up, exposing our not-so-sorry faces. Once we were outside of the store, we let our giggles loose.

"Oh my god, Rey. Did you see his face when you told him off? Oh, that was funny!"

"Holy crap, guys," I said, slightly breathless. "That was fun. And kind of scary." I look at Piper's screen over her shoulder. My eyes widen in shock. "Oh my God- there are nine hundred thousand of y'all?" Sure enough, when I looked on the screen, there were over a million people on our live. "Are we actually that interesting?"

Comments were flying through the phone like crazy. I only managed to read a few, but all of them seemed to be something along the lines of, 'Haha, yes lmao your awesome!' or 'I LOVE YOUR NEW ALBUM!' I even saw a few 'OML I LOVE YOU plz follow meeee''s.

"Thanks, guys," Piper said. "I mean, we really weren't gonna do anything today. Then we all kind of got depressed and thought, 'You know what will fix this? Shopping.' Then we got bored again. So we decided to get kicked out of target. Kind of."

"Well, who's fault was the depressed thing?" I gave Piper a pointed look and her cheeks slightly flushed.

"I said I was sorry..."

"It's okay, love. I forgive you." I hug her around the neck and kissed her cheek. "Ew! Cooties!"

"Ha, no." I looked back at the screen and saw the screen bombarded with Pipeyna comments.

"Yes!" I said, setting my chin on Piper's shoulder. "Pipeyna is real!"

"Yeah, guys. She's my wife." She rested her head on mine and squeezed my hand. "Don't come for my baby."

I saw a few comments that said, " lol what about Markus?" and "What about Mareyna?" My heart sank. _Riiight. No one knew about our break up._ All of our fans were super supportive of our relationship, and loved us together. Damn, they were going to be just as heartbroken as I am...

I plastered an 'I don't really care' look on my face. "He can deal with it. He's a big boy."

"Sharing is caring, Mark." Piper looked at me through the phone. "You should probably call the others."

"Well, that would make sense, wouldn't it?" I pulled my phone out of my back pocket and punched in Annabeth's number. She picked up quickly and I put her on speaker. "Hey, loser. Get over here- we already won."

"Girl, we totally would have won... if we didn't get kicked out."

"You got what now?"

"Yeah, so apparently you met our not-so super friendly employee."

"Ooh. Yeah?"

"Yeah. We ran into him twice. Second time he told us to... what was it, Pipes?"

"Pretty sure he told us to 'gather our trashy friends and get out.'"

"Ew, I hate this guy," Hazel said disgustedly. "Let's get out of here."

"Hold up," I said before they can hang up. "Did you know we have nine hundred thousand people on our live right now?"

"Oh my god. Really?" Calypso squealed. "When I ended ours we had about 550k. Is anyone there from our live?"

I repeated the question, and multiple people said yes. "You guys go hard! Shout out to you! We love you so much!"

"You have no idea how much you mean to us," Piper started. "It's ridiculous how much you've changed our lives. I'm so excited for what's to come."

"We all are," I said. Just then, the girls came out of the doors and towards our little spot near one of the huge metal balls outside the store. I pressed the red button on my call screen.

"You know, some people can be so rude," Hazel stated.

"I second," Calypso said.

"I third," Annabeth laughed.

"I fourth," Piper threw in. They all looked at me. I looked up from my text message.

"Oh, I fifth." I refocused on my message. I was asking if I could tell everybody the news. Yes, everyone knew we were doing a few shows in New York, but no one had a clue about our tour. As the girls make more small talk towards the camera, I receive a _ping!_ of good news. I grin and hold my phone in front of my friends faces.

"Guys, check it out." Their smiles grow as they read my conversation with Leo and Thalia. An approval.

"Oh, yes," Annabeth said. "Okay, guys. We have to go. We love you so, so much and can't thank you guys enough."

"Yeah, thanks for watching us run around like idiots," Hazel smirked. "But, if you tune in tonight around..." she looked at us for a time.

"Meh, 6:50 I think we're out of a meeting," Annabeth said.

"Okay, so we'll try to start up a live at seven tonight," Peach continued. "Tell the friends and fam. Spread the word, loves. Also, what are we gonna call you guys? Like, Taylor has her Swifties and One Direction had their Directioners. What do you guys think? Tell us during tonight's live."

"We love you so much!" Piper said, blowing air kisses. "See you guys tonight!"

"Bye!" I waved as Piper pressed the end button. "Oh my gosh- I'm so happy they said we could announce the tour!"

"Shh!" Annabeth shushed me. "We don't know if someone is listening or not. They could leak it before we get to announce it."

"Oof, true," Hazel said.

"Now, here's the real question-" Calypso started. "Who are you dragging on tour with you?"

"Um, Thalia and Leo, of course," I said. "There's a few things we're gonna be working on on the road. I guess we'll have another bus for our team, too. So a lot of people."

"Sounds miserable," she snorted.

"Well, get used to it," Pipes said, "because you're coming with us."

Calypso gaped. "Wait, really?"

I giggled. "Duh. Who else would get us up at an indecent hour and make us do fun shit?"

"OMG, no way!" She pulled us all into a group hug. "Wait, where would I stay?"

"Probably with us," Annabeth reassured her. "I'm pretty sure there's six bunks to a bus, so you can camp with us."

"Thank God." She put a hand to her chest. "I don't think I could live on the same bus as Leo for three months."

"Three and a half, actually," Hazel reminded us.

"Ew. Three and a half months with you losers? Gross!"

"Offense!" Hazel said, faking hurt.

"Bruh, I was kidding. I'm so excited! I can't wait to tour the country with my fave people!"

"I'm stoked, guys. You have no clue how ready I am," Annabeth announced excitedly. "I can't wait to get out of New York; I've just about had it with this city."

"Girl, I feel that with my heart and soul," I agreed. "September can't come fast enough."

"Well, it does mean we have a little more time to get in some good writing and studio time," Piper suggested. "Maybe we can get another EP out right before the tour?"

"Yeah, we got a few ideas down some weeks ago, right?" Hazel reminded us.

"Yeah. I got something else I need to get out, though," I admitted, pain trickling into my chest.

"Let's get home, then," Cal decided, and with that we hopped in the car and left. It was around 6:15 when we got home, just in time for our conference with Apollo. He was usually a good ten minutes late, we we took the time to clean up our mess as fast as humanly possible and replace the vase. Per our estimate, he came in at 6:25.

"Evening, ladies," he said when he came in.

"Evening, Apollo," we mumbled from the couch, eyes glued to the pages sprawled in front of us.

"Got something new for me?" He moved into the dining room and set down his bag. When we didn't follow, he shuffled back to the sofa. It sank down as he sat to my left; I barely noticed since I was so immersed in the lyrics I had scribbled and scratched out. I just couldn't seem to get it right.

"Ugh! It's useless!" I threw down the spiral I was holding and buried my head in my hands.

"Whoa, there!" Apollo said, resting a hand on my knee. "Nothing's useless."

I pointed to myself. "Living proof."

He scoffed. "Rey, you gotta be easier on yourself. You are _not_ useless. What're you trying to write?"

"I don't even know." I looked up to see him and the girls looking at me with sympathy. "What?"

"What're you trying to say, Reyna?" Apollo asked again. "What are you trying to ask?"

I thought for a second. What was I trying to ask? A few things went through my mind: "Why can't I do anything right?" or "Why does it seem like I let everybody down even though I thought I did everything in my power to do the exact opposite?"

"After everything that I've done, am I still not good enough?" A lump formed in my throat as my voice cracked. "Am I still not worth that much?"

Apollo's eyes widened as he gently picked the spiral off the ground and set it in my lap. He placed a pen in my hand. "That's good." He nodded towards the book. "Write it down. I did as he asked, sniffing and quickly hitting it on the next clean sheet of paper.

"Um," Annabeth started. "You could- you could apologize?" I looked at her, confused. "Like, uh, I'm sorry for the way my life turned out."

"I'm sorry for the smile I have on now," Hazel murmured.

"Try 'the smile I'm wearing now,'" Piper quietly suggested. I hurriedly wrote in the thoughts and tacked on the final statement.

"Okay, this is what we got:

Am I still not good enough?

Am I still not worth that much?

I'm sorry for the way my life turned out,

I'm sorry for the smile I'm wearing now.

Guess I'm still not good enough."

My eyes stung. This is everything I've felt since last November. How... how were we able to write this?

"Shit," Piper mumbles.

"You could say that again," Annabeth chuckled humorlessly.

"Shit."

Apollo cracked a grin. "Your pain is what makes you stronger. Your sadness is what makes you human. Your anger is what makes you motivated. And your bond with each other is what keeps you going. That's how you're going to go far. That's how you're going to make it. You've come this far with each other- don't lose that. No matter what comes your way, do _not_ lose each other." Though he was smiling, he had a wistful look in his eye. "I think we're done here."

"Wait, what?" Hazel said. "What about the meeting?"

"We can do that next week. Reschedule for Thursday. Nothing that is crucial momentarily. Although, I would love to hear the rest of the lyrics when we meet." He grabbed his bag and pushed the elevator button as we watched him, confused out of our minds. Once he stepped through the doors, he gave us a two finger salute. "Ciao, bellezze." And then he was gone.

"What just happened," Calypso asked. She was looking around at us from her spot at the very end of the couch, opposite of me. "Can I know?"

"Yeah," I said, smiling a bit. "I think we have he start of a new song."

"Well, that's awesome!"

"Yeah, this one's gonna be hard to write, though," Annabeth considered. "It's probably gonna be the most personal."

"How fun!" Hazel sarcastically cheered. "More tears and angst- just what we need!"

"Whatever, Peach. We could make this a cool song; that's what I'm going to focus on. This could totally be a ballad."

"I second," Piper agreed.

"Third."

"Forth."

"Fifth!" Calypso piped up. We giggled as a thought flashed through my mind.

"Hey guys, what time is it?"

"Uh, 6:56. Why?"

"We said we'd get back on the live around seven. What do we want to talk about?"

"I guess how our tour's going to start in September and how we'll release the tour dates in once we verify the schedule," Hazel stated.

"That, and we asked about the name that they wanted to be called," Pipes reminded us.

"Have you thought about making a band account?" Calypso asked suddenly.

"What?"

"You know, a band Instagram account. It would be easier to promote your music and tours and stuff. That way everyone gets the information from the same spot. They aren't going to four different sources to find one thing or one date or whatever it could be. Just a thought- I kinda thought it might make you a little more organized."

"Callie, that's an awesome idea!" I said, quickly logging out of my personal account. "Should we just do 'changingways'?"

"Yeah, that way it's easy to remember."

"I'm gonna make the password 'reypeachpipesandannie.'"

"No, not Annie!" Annabeth whined. "Please, no."

"Fine, I'll do 'reypeachpipesandwg.' WG for Wise Girl."

"Better."

"Good. We officially have a band account, courtesy of Calypso." I gasped. "Girl, if you ever open a restaurant or something, you should totally call it Courtesy of Calypso."

"Yeah, like that'll happen."

"Okay- we can do the live on this account, and just put on our stories that we have a new Instagram for the band, if that's good with you guys." We quickly did so and set up my phone to face us. "Alright, seven o'clock. Let's do this."

The news was taken better than we thought. We had people from across the nation ask what cities we were visiting. We told them we were still going over cities and dates, so we would tell them everything once we got the schedule set. Then, the time came,

"Alright, guys," Piper said, rubbing her hands together. "We asked you what you thought the Changing Ways family should be called, and now's the time. What do you think?" We got many different, cool, fun little names. Annabeth wrote them down as she saw them. All of them were catchy, but there was one that really caught my eye.

"Wait, hold on. saphireprincess- what was the one you said?" It was repeated multiple times, and I actually really liked it.

"Whoa, that's actually pretty dope."

"Yeah, I like it, too," Annabeth smiled.

"What is it?" Calypso came into the frame. I pointed to the last word on Annie's page, and she nodded enthusiastically. "Ooh, that's cool. I agree."

"I think we found our favorite," Hazel announced. "Here it is..."

Our amazing fans were now called...

* * *

I would just like to complain for a second about how I accidentally deleted my page with all of my plans for this story, and didn't even realize it until now. Literally, all my chapter ideas and little excerpts that I wanted to add in chapters eventually. There were probably fifteen different excerpts and thoughts on the FaLIPPING PaGe. And it's GoNe. Long story short- I'm pissed. But oh, well! At least this was a happier chapter!

Unfortunately, I'm _still_ an asshole and left off on a cliff hanger. If you guys have a suggestion for what the name for the fan base, then review or PM me your idea. I already have a few thoughts, but meh. We'll see.

Also, someone asked if I could clarify Reyna and Markus' fight. And the answer is yes, yes I can. So basically, Markus wanted to have sex with Reyna, but she didn't want to have her first time in the drunken state they were both in. So she said no. Then Markus said "Well, it's a little too late for that." Or something along those lines. Basically, what he's referring to is her abusive, alcoholic father who was thrown in jail when she was four-ish years old and how he tried to rape her (i think this was the twelfth chapter? idk. i'm too lazy to check...). If you think it's kind of stupid she broke up with him for that, then you are sorely mistaken. I'm not trying to strip you of your opinion, but speaking in the place of someone with a fucked up background, you do _not_ just say something like that and expect us to forget it, because it really hurts, guys. Having someone remind you what you went through or have someone that you trusted enough to tell your situation to in the first place use that against you is literally like having someone cut your heart open. I'm not taking the scenario I wrote about Reyna lightly at all, I promise. It's not just a part of this story- it's apart of a bigger story, a very unfortunate one. This stuff does happen, and if you know it's happening or see it happening, please do something about it. Don't be afraid to let someone you can trust know so they can help you get out of it or report it. Don't be a bystander.

Okay, moving on from my short ad. Love you guys!

 _ **~ TheKeeperGeek**_


	19. Nineteen- Leave Or Stay

**Ew, guys. The girls are not doing well. They're kind of being bitches but it's okay. Will Mareyna get back together? We don't know. What's all the sexual tension going on between Percabeth? I don't know that either. Frazel? What's the story there? (Actually, it's in Chapter 13 I'm pretty sure...) Markus is mad at Piper, the girls are still forgiving her, Reyna and Frank don't seem to be talking all that much, and Leo and Calypso may have some kind of thing going on. The only one not effected by any of this is Jasper. And currently... they aren't a thing.**

 **So this entire story is a pretty much a mess. Your welcome! (i'm actually sorry)**

* * *

 ** _SHOUT OOOOOOOOUUUUUUUTTTSS!:_**

~ **ShadowHunter399** for favoriting and following both me and _Possibly Noticed!_

~ **hatake654343** for following and favoriting _Possibly Noticed!_

* * *

 **Disclaimer :**

There's lots of ways to insult someone. For example: "You're an asshat," "Stop spewing a load of bullshit," or "You don't own the Percy Jackson series or characters ya dimbot; Rick Riordan does."

* * *

 ** _Hazel's P.O.V_**

"I need COFFEE!" Annabeth yells as she curls up in the back of the car. "I will not survive if I don't get it. I don't care where we go. Just some sustenance. I beg of you."

"Okay, sheesh. There's gonna be coffee at the cafe where we're meeting Thalia. Calm your tits," Reyna grumbled from the drivers seat. It was currently 9:15 in the morning, and Annabeth... well, she still didn't really do mornings.

"My tits will not be calm until I've had coffee," my friend grumbled from beside me, burying her head in my rich purple sundress. I patted her back, rubbing small circles over her black overdress that covered a white cropped tee. She flung her black platform sandals on the seat and sighed.

"If you get makeup on my dress, I'll hurt you," I said. She moved her head and checked her makeup. Her baby pink lipstick, bold lashes, and winged eyeliner hadn't budged.

"You can thank Peach for that," Piper noted from up front. She turned around as her gold hoop earrings sparkled and glossy nude lips smiled. She pushed her curly hair out of her eyes. "She's the one who took a solid hour to get dressed." Her short gold tank shined in comparison to her ripped white shorts.

"Um, do you _not_ see how crucial it was that my hair was straight today?" I smart back. I discretely check the camera on my phone in my lap. Blush pink lips? Check. Rosy cheeks? Of course. Long, full lashes? A must. Slayed brows? You know it. I crossed my feet, which loosely supported brown, jeweled sandals. "This couldn't have happened without straight hair."

"Yes, it could've," Reyna called. Her red crocheted tube top and matching red lips stood out boldly on her skin, and her high waisted black jean shorts cutely matched black converse. "Your natural hair would've looked great _and_ we wouldn't have a whining Annabeth."

"Whatever. You don't get it- your hair is naturally board straight and gorgeously shiny."

She flipped her perfect hair over her shoulder. "Why, thank you, Peachy."

Currently, we were heading to the meeting we were supposed to have with Thalia last Saturday. Fortunately- even though he couldn't make it- Apollo rescheduled it to today so we could get some of our frustration out in writing. Luckily, it worked. We had a brand new song planned out and a new idea of one we wanted to start. We were excited to get them going; once something comes to you, you gotta keep rolling with it.

Oh, yeah. And our fans are called the Stars.

They came up with it all on their own. When we were on the live almost a week ago, someone named saphireprincess suggested the Stars. Originally, I didn't get it. But when she started to explain it, the catchier it got, and the more I really liked it. She explained that in our song, Gold, we sang that "Of all the stars out tonight, you shine brighter," and "You glow like the moon, you shine like the sun. This goes for you, wherever you are." She said that they could be our stars, our glow and shine, and we could be their one in a million. Hearing this made my heart soar, and I immediately agreed. So, here we are- Changing Ways, and our shining Stars.

It only took a little bit to get to the small cafe where we were meeting Thalia. Once we were there, we were able to park and head inside pretty easy.

"Oh my god, coffee," Annie said and ran out of the car. Piper followed, rolling her eyes as her white wedges clacked on the sidewalk. I linked arms with her as Reyna locked the car and started behind us, looking down at her phone.

We walked in the quaint little shop and saw very few people there. The attendant looked up from his conversation with a waitress and sent us an easy smile.

"Are you here with Ms. Grace?"

"Um, yes," I hesitantly answered, shrugging my small bag over my shoulder.

"Perfect. Follow me, please." He lead us to an outside patio, where a tousled black head sat at the head of a table, waiting with a menu covering his face. Once she dropped it, she flashed us a bright smile.

"Morning, ladies!"

"Morning, Thalia," we said in sync. We plopped down in our seats as the waitress we saw earlier came up to our table.

"Hi, guys. What can I get you started with?"

"I would like a coffee," Annabeth said sweetly. "With creamer and sugar, please."

"Me too," I said.

"Me as well," Piper smiled.

"Can I just have a hot chocolate?" Reyna asked.

"Of course. On the way, ladies." She walked off and Thalia cleared her throat.

"So, girls. Apollo said you left off writing last week. Did we finish anything?"

"One thing we really liked, yeah." I pulled out our book from my bag and flipped to the page. "We have an idea on how we want it to sound, but we wanted to get the words right before we went for anything else." She sat back in his chair and read through the pages. My leg bounced nervously under the table as she scanned it with a critical eye. "...well?" I asked timidly.

"Well, damn girls." Shs closed our book with a napkin marking the page. "From what I've seen, this could turn into a masterpiece. Wow." I released a breath, looking at Reyna. Even though we all put ourselves into this song, she was the one who shoved her heart and soul into it. This really was her song, and she was determined to work her ass off to get that huge part she gave herself. She's going to have to belt her heart out.

"Thank you," she said, relieved. "We really worked on it."

"I can tell." She pulled a huge grin on her face. "I'm proud, Changing Ways. You've done it again." My smile was enormous. All of their pride and faith in us always seems to bring out the pride and faith in myself, and right now it blossomed in my chest.

"Oh, thank God," Piper said. "I was terrified." I giggled.

"The next one is a little more fun," Annabeth flipped the book for him as our drinks were set down. She ogled her coffee and shoved the book in my hand. She rapidly dumped sugar and creamer in the cup and tenderly sipped. "Oh, that's amazing."

Thalia raised an eyebrow. "I don't think I've ever seen someone more excited to drink coffee."

"She's an addict," I explained as we quickly ordered our breakfast and passed up our menus. "She'll have it drained in about five minutes."

"... okay, then. Next thing on the agenda for this morning," she announced, flipping through his planner as Annabeth blushed behind her cup of coffee. "'Other social matters of the group.'" She looked up at us. "I'm assuming there's nothing?"

"Not really," I said, my mind wondering to a pretty little blue jay on a leafy green tree in the small courtyard area of this little shop. There was a beautifully crafted birdbath carved out of granite that sat by the tree, and a butterfly fluttered past us to another. I love springtime...

"Well, our fans did come up with something they wanted us to call them," Reyna started. I snapped out of my trance. The Butterflies! Oh, wait, no. I meant, uh, the Stars!

"Yeah!" I followed. "They said they wanted to be called the Stars." Our manager looked at us with an eyebrow raised.

"Okay. There a reason?"

"Oh, yeah. Well, in Gold we said how 'Of all the stars out tonight, you're one in a billion,' and that they 'glow like the moon' and 'shine like the sun.' They said... shoot, what did they say?"

"They said that they could be our Stars, lighting the way for us, and we could be their one in a million," Annabeth said, glowing.

"Cool. Sounds good." She started to flip through his booklet again as the girls and I exchanged glaces.

 _You ask him!_ Reyna said with her eyes.

 _No, you do it!_ Piper shot back. They looked at me and Annabeth.

 _Oh, hell no. I am_ not _doing it,_ I said defensively.

 _Please, don't make me do it,_ Annabeth begged. I immediately touched my nose. The other's followed, and Piper was the last one.

 _NO! I don't wanna do it!_ She whined.

 _Ugh, fine. Sissies. I'll do it,_ Annie rolled her eyes. I gave her a thumbs up and she mocked me. I didn't care- as long as I didn't have to ask!

"Um, Thalia?" She started.

"Yes?"

"We were thinking..."

"Well, that sounds dangerous. There's always something going on when Annabeth's thinking." She put her finger on a line in her notes and looked up. "What's up, hun?"

"We were wondering, if maybe- if it was okay with you..." she glanced at us again. I nodded enthusiastically. "If we could maybeputoutamerchline?"

"Whoa, English, Annie."

She sighed. "Do you think we could possibly put out a merch line?" She thought for a second.

"Sure, sounds like a good idea. Who do you want to design it?" Whoa, she agreed?

"Uhh, Silena Beauregard? And maybe we could do one kind of by ourselves?"

"Yeah, whatever you want. Go for it." She focused back on her book as we cheered to ourselves. "Ah, here's half of the reason for the meeting: tour. You said you wanted to start it in September?"

"Yes, if possible."

"It's possible. Did you want to start it in New York?"

"Um, I guess it doesn't matter to us," Piper shrugged. "We're good with whatever you think we should do."

"Alrighty, then. If there's any particular places you want to play, text me and I'll look into it." We nodded. "Cool. Last thing, then. You obviously noticed that there isn't much in the pent except your rooms and the previous furniture."

"Oh, yeah. We did, didn't we?" Annabeth silently looked at us and chuckled under her breath. I knew exactly what she was thinking about: the whole Rey and Pipes getting kicked out of Target ordeal. That was hilarious! I swallowed my laugh, but barely kept the smirk off my face. Our win still totally counted!

"Well, as rough as it sounds, you're going to need to go house hunting sooner than later. I'm guessing none of you are eighteen yet?" We shook our heads no.

"I'll be eighteen July 12th, though, so we could buy it under my name."

"And if we wait until after the tour, Hazel and I are going to be eighteen," Reyna said. "Mine's October 23rd and hers is December 17th."

"I hate being the baby," Piper whined. "You'd think Hazel would be, but no. Of course it's me."

"Hey!" I said, slightly offended but knowing that the truth is definitely there. "Well, true. If it makes you feel better, I still act like it. You can't help you were a June baby."

"I wish I could," she grumbled.

"Back to the point," Thalia said, tapping her watch. Just then, our food arrived. My stomach growled at the sight of my dish. The rich, smooth syrup drowning the fluffy pancake cake and crispy strips of bacon. And the hash browns! Oh, the hash browns, toasted to perfection and seasoned so perfectly with salt and pepper, would be oh-so incredible with the tender potato-

"Does this all look correct?" The waitress asked, interrupting my sensational daydream about my food.

"It looks perfect," I assured her while throwing the cloth napkin in my lap, brandishing my fork and knife.

"Awesome. Well, let me know if you need anything." And with that, she left me in awe of the magnificent plate in front of me.

"Anyway, let's continue?" So continue we did. We discussed the people we would take with us on tour- our 'glam' squad and Calypso, Leo and herself, obviously- and most of the dates for the tour. We have our first show set for September 20th at the Music Hall of Williamsburg. We. Were. Hype! Until the not-so-hot news came from Thalia's planner.

"I wanted to save this one for last so you were, hopefully, in a good mood when I had to deliver this piece of news." She shifted in her chair, and a sudden dread pulled on my stomach. I even set down my fork- that's how nervous I was getting.

"What is it?" I asked.

"The matter concerning your future residence. You probably know that Solace Records is based in L.A.?"

I think I know where this is going... "Yes, we do..."

"Well, if you girls would like to keep going as fast as we're going, I would recommend you ladies move down to California with us." My eyes grew wide.

"Wait," Annabeth said. "You want us to move down to L.A.? Like, forever live down there?"

"I did say recommend," she reminded us. "You wouldn't have to, if you didn't want to. It would just make things a lot easier for us to record and put together your EPs and, eventually, an album." Shit, she had a point there.

"So," Reyna tried to clarify, "you 'would like' us to move down to Los Angeles- twenty-seven hundred miles away from everything and everyone we know- so we can better work with the label?"

"Yes."

"Wait, I thought you lived in New York?" I said, confused.

"Lived. Past-tense. I occasionally come back when I'm needed. Plus, some of the talents live in New York. They just see Apollo's assistants until he can come back up and check with them. So it isn't necessary that you move down, but you would get more one-on-one experience with him. I completely understand that moving is terrifying and hard to do at your age, so it's completely your choice on whether or not you want to leave or stay."

There was a small silence as we looked back and forth at each other. Were we seriously considering this? "I only wanted to throw the idea out there to let you know it was an option. You don't have to decide anytime soon. Let's continue with the rest of the meeting?"

After it was over and we cleaned our plates, we drove back to the pent with non-stop chatter. And- not to brag or anything- but my food tasted just as incredible as it looked and smelled. Just a quick side note. Once we stepped inside, a thought spun in my mind. I threw my bag at my feet as I curled up on the couch and kicked off my shoes. I brought my knees to my chest as my thought started to make more sense.

"What 'cha thinking about, Peach?" Piper asked as she plopped on the couch by my feet.

"I mean, it could be a stupid idea," I started, sitting criss cross so she could scoot closer, "but what if we didn't wait until after the tour to buy a house? I mean, yeah, sure- we might be a little stressed out, but what else are we going to do this summer? Okay, yes. We're obviously going to write more, but we're going to get stressed out doing that, too. There's no avoiding that; we always get stressed writing."

"This is true," Piper shortly smiled. "But why add to that?"

"Because... the more I think about it, this place isn't home. I'm not sure if I ever thought it would be, but if I didn't I know I was sorely mistaken. This is temporary. It's always been temporary, we just haven't really realized it yet. I want something that's going to feel like it belongs to us, to _me._ Again, if you think about it, nothing's really ever belonged to us. It belonged to our parents. And this penthouse belongs to Apollo. I want to feel like I own something, you know? And since Annabeth's turning eighteen before the tour, we really don't have to wait."

"Yeah, you're right. About all of it." Piper started to get a light in her eyes. "We can plan out how we want it to look." She hauled my bag up on the couch and took out the spiral we had scribbled in. Tearing out a page and grabbing a pen, she threw the bag back on the floor and drew a messy looking blueprint. "Obviously, it's not going to be the most professional thing, but we can make a blueprint and jot down some things we really want for our house."

"Good idea!" We spent a few minutes calling out random thoughts and ideas before Annabeth and Reyna joined us. Once Annie saw our pathetic doodle, she tore out another few pages and drew an incredible plan for what we were trying to do. A few more minutes of randomness, and our rough sketch was complete.

"Now for the real question- are we going to stay in New York?" I asked.

"I'm not sure," Annabeth admitted, erasing stray lines on her masterpiece. "In all honesty, I have no true reason to stay. Leaving might actually be good for me."

"I guess it's the same for me," Reyna agreed. "It'll gives us all a chance to breathe. Part of me almost feels like I'm choking here."

"You're not wrong," Piper nodded. "L.A. was a lot of fun when I lived there. Minus the bullies and other crap from school, but we won't have to worry about that. We're done with that shit, so it would literally just be us and the industry."

"Guys, I know this is starting to sound like a good idea because everybody's mad at everybody, but once this dies down- shut up, you know it will- aren't you gonna miss everyone?" They seemed to get my point. They didn't like it, but they understood.

"Actually, I'm all good." Piper raised her hands. "Most of my family actually lives in Cali and Markus is going to Stanford on a football scholarship, so. I'm gucci.""You did not just say that," Annie said, wrinkling her nose. "I mean, the guys can also always visit us. It's not like we won't ever see them again."

"I guess the same would go for my parents," I murmured. "They would understand, wouldn't they? They've always been super supportive..."

"Hold up," Piper said, holding up a hand. "Are we seriously considering moving to Los Angeles?"

Annabeth looked between us. "I guess we are!"

"New adventures await us in the City of Angels," Reyna said excitedly.

I cheered. "We're moving to L.A.!"

* * *

 **Wow, usually my chapters are longer than this. It was kind of a filler; the interesting stuff can come later. BTW, standardized testing sucks. Good day!**

 _ **~ TheKeeperGeek**_


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